APPARATUS FOR THE CLEANING OF ROAD DRAINS

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains. Background Art

At present, it is known to clean road drains manually.

The cleaning operation requires lifting the manhole covering the road drain with a manually operated tool, and then cleaning the edges of the manhole with other tools, still of the manual type.

The manual cleaning of a single drain takes a variable amount of time, depending on the shape and type of the drain itself, but generally takes between 20 and 29 minutes in total.

This type of manual cleaning does have some drawbacks, comprising the fact that it takes quite a long time, even for small drains, making this operation not very efficient as a whole.

In addition, another drawback of the prior art is the fact that the operators in charge of cleaning inevitably come into contact with dirt accumulated in the drain, which exposes them to a biological risk against which it is necessary to take precautions.

Finally, a notable drawback is the fact that the operator engages in rather tiring and articulated operations on a drain located at street level, so the risk of developing in the long run occupational diseases is likely to occur, especially muscle- skeletal and particularly at the back level.

Description of the Invention

The main aim of the present invention is to devise an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains that allows simplifying the cleaning operations, making the human intervention much more practical and easy than the prior art.

Within this aim, one object of the present invention is to make cleaning operations faster and more efficient.

Another object of the present invention is to devise an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains that can reduce the biological risk and the risk of occupational diseases borne by the operators involved, thus reducing the costs associated with these risks.

Another object of the present invention is to devise an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains that allows overcoming the mentioned drawbacks of the prior art within the ambit of a simple, rational, easy, effective to use and low-cost solution.

The aforementioned objects are achieved by the present apparatus for the cleaning of road drains having the characteristics of claim 1.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will be more evident from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains, illustrated as an indicative, but not limiting example in the attached tables of drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an axonometric view of the apparatus and of the relevant motor vehicle according to the invention;

Figures 2, 3 and 4 are schematic views of successive phases of the operation of the apparatus according to the invention;

Figure 5 is an axonometric view of a detail of the apparatus according to the invention;

Figure 6 is an axonometric view of the interior of the apparatus according to the invention.

Fmbodiments of the Invention

With particular reference to such figures, reference numeral 1 globally indicates an apparatus for the cleaning of road drains.

In the particular embodiment shown in the figures, the apparatus 1 is mounted on board a motor vehicle 2 for road cleaning, which the present invention also relates to.

The motor vehicle 2 comprises a chassis 3 and a ground moving system 4 associated with the chassis 3.

The ground moving system 4, e.g., comprises a plurality of wheels 5 and a motor for driving these.

The motor vehicle 2 also comprises a driving compartment 6 which can accommodate one or more operators for driving along the road.

In addition, the motor vehicle 2 can be provided with traditional road cleaning systems, such as brushes and sprayers that spray a cleaning fluid onto the road. Therefore, the motor vehicle 2 is able to move independently along the roads to clean them with brushes and sprayers.

In addition, the motor vehicle 2 can move independently to place itself near a road drain 7 to be cleaned.

The road drain 7 comprises a manhole cover 8 and a cavity 9 that can be closed by means of the manhole cover 8 itself.

In this regard, the cavity 9 has an edge 10 on which the manhole cover 8 can be placed.

The cleaning of the road drain 7 is obtained by means of the apparatus 1.

For this purpose, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one automatic removal unit 11 of the manhole cover 8 and at least one automatic cleaning unit 12 of the road drain 7, in particular of the cavity 9, with the manhole cover 8 removed.

It is specified that, in the present treatise, the term“automatic” is used to describe a device that is not operated manually, while allowing limited human intervention for setting, starting, controlling and/or switching it off.

Advantageously, the removal unit 11 comprises at least one magnet 13 adapted to take the manhole cover 8 by magnetic attraction.

In particular, the magnet 13 is an electromagnet that can be controlled by means of electric current, thanks to which it is possible to take the manhole cover 8 and to release the same by supplying and interrupting electric power, respectively.

It cannot however be ruled out to make the removal unit 11 in a different manner, e.g. by means of a permanent magnet and other devices for detaching the manhole cover 8 from the permanent magnet itself.

In the particular embodiment shown in Figure 5, the removal unit 11 comprises a plurality of magnets 13, in particular four, arranged in a quadrilateral fashion. The presence of a plurality of magnets 13 allows taking the manhole cover 8 in several points, thus ensuring a more stable and secure grip. Advantageously, the cleaning unit 12 comprises at least one of a scraper tool 14 and a dirt suction element 15.

In the specific case of these figures, the scraper tool 14 and the suction element 15 are both present, but it cannot be ruled out that only one of the two can be provided, depending on the type of cleaning that must be carried out on the road drain 7.

The scraper tool 14 comprises a rotating conical element the purpose of which is to cause the detachment by friction of the dirt encrusted on the edge 10 of the road drain 7.

The suction element 15, on the other hand, is of the type of a pipe used for the suction of dirt which is then conveyed to a separator 16 of the liquid fraction from the solid fraction, the latter subsequently conveyed to a compactor 17.

It cannot however be ruled out that the scraper tool 14, the suction element 15 and the connected components may be made differently, e.g. the separator 16 and the compactor 17 may not be provided, or the scraper tool 14 may have a different shape.

The figures do not show in detail the instruments (pipes) with which the suction element 15 is connected to the separator 16 and to the compactor 17.

Appropriately, the cleaning unit 12 comprises at least one feeler element 18 adapted to detect the edge 10 of the road drain 7 with the manhole cover 8 removed.

In the example shown in the figures, in particular Figure 5, this feeler element 18 coincides with the scraper tool 14, which is provided in fact with sensors 19 selected from bending sensors and compression sensors.

It cannot however be ruled out that the feeler element 18 may coincide with the suction element 15 and that the latter may be provided with the aforementioned sensors 19, or be a separate element.

Advantageously, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one blowing assembly 20 adapted to eliminate the sediments accumulated on top of the manhole cover 8. In the example shown in Figure 5, the blowing assembly 20 comprises some nozzles 21, which emit an air flow rate conveyed by a pumping assembly, the latter not shown in detail in the figures.

It cannot however be ruled out that a different system may be provided for removing the sediments accumulated on top of the manhole cover 8, e.g. using the brushes of the motor vehicle 2, and therefore that no blowing assembly 20 could be provided at all.

Appropriately, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one visor device 22 for viewing the road drain 7 by means of at least one remote electronic device.

The visor device 22 consists e.g. of a camera.

It is specified that, in the present treatise, the word “remote” means an electronic device that allows sending and/or receiving information at a distance, such as e.g. a control panel or a screen.

More specifically, the remote electronic device preferably consists of a display located in the driving compartment 6 of the motor vehicle 2.

Advantageously, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one base body 23, which is mounted movable on the chassis 3 and supports the removal unit 11 and the cleaning unit 12.

Appropriately, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one driving assembly 24 adapted to rotate the base body 23 around a substantially vertical main rotation axis 25.

It is specified that, in the context of the present treatise, the adjectives “horizontal” and“vertical” are to be considered with respect to the normal position taken by the motor vehicle 2 on a flat ground.

Therefore, in the event of the motor vehicle 2 being on an uneven ground, e.g. on an uphill or downhill slope, the term“horizontal” defines a direction parallel to the ground, while the term“vertical” defines a direction orthogonal to the ground itself.

By rotating the base body 23, the removal unit 11, the cleaning unit 12 and the visor device 22 may be placed alternately at the road drain 7, in particular on top of it.

Advantageously, the apparatus 1 comprises at least one of:

- translation means 30, 39, 52, 65 along a substantially horizontal direction; - lifting means 41, 54, 66 along a substantially vertical direction;

- rotation means 31, 40, 53 around a substantially vertical auxiliary rotation axis 38, 48, 61;

of at least one of:

- the visor device 22;

- the removal unit 11 ;

- the scraper tool 14;

- the suction element 15.

In this regard, it should be noticed that, in the particular embodiment shown in the figures, the visor device 22, the removal unit 11, the scraper tool 14 and the suction element 15 are arranged in four separate stations distributed on the base body 23 and are movable inside their respective stations by means of the translation means 30, 39, 52, 65, the lifting means 41, 54, 66 and/or the rotation means 31, 40, 53.

In the present treatise, in particular, the four stations are called“first station”, “second station”,“third station” and“fourth station”; moreover, in accordance with this nomenclature and unless expressly indicated differently:

- the components of the first station 26 are identified with the adjective“first” and its inflected forms;

- the components of the second station 27 are identified with the adjective “second” and its inflected forms;

- the components of the third station 28 are identified with the adjective “third” and its inflected forms;

- the components of the fourth station 29 are identified with the adjective “fourth” and its inflected forms.

The visor device 22 is located in the first station 26, which is provided with first translation means 30 and first rotation means 31 and has no lifting means, since the visor device 22 does not require vertical motion.

The first station 26 comprises a first pocket 32, radially extending with respect to the main rotation axis 25, inside which the visor device 22 can shift.

Inside the first station 26, the first translation means 30 comprise: - a first flexible tape 33, locked together with the visor device 22 and adapted to move the same in the first pocket 32;

- first rollers 34, around which the first flexible tape 33 is wrapped;

- a first guide 35, adapted to guide the shift of the visor device 22 in the first pocket 32;

- a first translator motor 36, adapted to set at least one of the first rollers 34 in rotation to cause the first flexible tape 33 to be wrapped and the visor device 22 to shift.

Inside the first station 26, the first rotation means 31 comprise a first rotational motor 37, kinematically connected to the visor device 22 and adapted to rotate the same around a first auxiliary rotation axis 38.

The removal unit 11 is located in the second station 27, which is provided with second translation means 39, second rotation means 40 and second lifting means 41.

The second station 27 comprises a second pocket 42, radially extending with respect to the main rotation axis 25, inside which the removal unit 11 can shift. Inside the second station 27, the second translation means 39 comprise:

- a second flexible tape 43, locked together with the removal unit 11 and adapted to move the same in the second pocket 42;

- second rollers 44, around which the second flexible tape 43 is wrapped;

- a second guide 45, adapted to guide the shift of the removal unit 11 in the second pocket 42;

- a second translator motor 46, adapted to set in rotation at least one of the second rollers 44 to cause the second flexible tape 43 to be wrapped and the removal unit 11 to shift.

Inside the second station 27, the second rotation means 40 comprise a second rotational motor 47, kinematically connected to the removal unit 11 and adapted to rotate the same around a second auxiliary rotation axis 48.

Inside the second station 27, the second lifting means 41 comprise:

- a second rack 49, locked together with the removal unit 11 ;

- a second gear 50, which engages on the second rack 49; - a second lifting motor 51, adapted to set the second gear 50 in rotation to move the second rack 49 and the removal unit 11 along a substantially vertical direction.

The scraper tool 14 is located in the third station 28, which is provided with third translation means 52, third rotation means 53 and third lifting means 54. The third station 28 comprises a third pocket 55, radially extending with respect to the main rotation axis 25, inside which the scraper tool 14 can shift.

Inside the third station 28, the third translation means 52 comprise:

- a third flexible tape 56, locked together with the scraper tool 14 and adapted to move the same in the third pocket 55;

- third rollers 57, around which the third flexible tape 56 is wrapped;

- a third guide 58, adapted to guide the shift of the scraper tool 14 in the third pocket 55;

- a third translator motor 59, adapted to set at least one of the third rollers 57 in rotation to cause the third flexible tape 56 to be wrapped and the scraper tool 14 to shift.

Inside the third station 28, the third rotation means 53 comprise a third rotational motor 60, kinematically connected to the scraper tool 14 and adapted to rotate the same around a third auxiliary rotation axis 61.

Inside the third station 28, the third lifting means 54 comprise:

- a third rack 62, locked together with the scraper tool 14;

- a third gear 63, which engages on the third rack 62;

- a third lifting motor 64, adapted to set the third gear 63 in rotation to move the third rack 62 and the scraper tool 14 along a substantially vertical direction.

The suction element 15 is located in the fourth station 29, which is provided with fourth translation means 65 and with fourth lifting means 66 and has no rotation means, since the suction element 15 does not require rotary motion.

The fourth station 29 comprises a fourth pocket 67, radially extending with respect to the main rotation axis 25, inside which the suction element 15 can shift. Inside the fourth station 29, the fourth translation means 65 comprise:

- a fourth flexible tape 68, locked together with the suction element 15 and adapted to move the same in the fourth pocket 67;

- fourth rollers 69, around which the fourth flexible tape 68 is wrapped;

- a fourth guide 70, adapted to guide the shift of the suction element 15 into the fourth pocket 67;

- a fourth translator motor 71, adapted to set at least one of the fourth rollers 69 in rotation to cause the fourth flexible tape 68 to be wrapped and the suction element 15 to shift.

Inside the fourth station 29, the fourth lifting means 66 comprise:

- a fourth rack 72, locked together with the suction element 15;

- a fourth gear 73, which engages on the fourth rack 72;

- a fourth lifting motor 74, adapted to set the fourth gear 73 in rotation to move the fourth rack 72 and the suction element 15 along a substantially vertical direction.

It cannot however be ruled out that movement means other than those described may be provided, for example, the translation means 30, 39, 52, 65, the lifting means 41, 54, 66 and/or the rotation means 31, 40, 53 could be provided by means of a pneumatic or hydraulic system.

As mentioned, in the particular embodiment illustrated in the figures, the apparatus 1 is mounted on a self-propelled motor vehicle 2; it cannot however be ruled out that the apparatus 1, according to the invention, can be mounted on a non self-propelled trolley support, but toweable by the operator along the road from a road drain 7 to the subsequent one.

The operation of the invention, according to the specific embodiment described above, is as follows.

The motor vehicle 2 is placed on top of a road drain 7 to be cleaned.

With the help of the visor device 22, one operator on board the motor vehicle 2 can observe the position of the road drain 7, without having to get off the motor vehicle 2 itself.

The visor device 22 is moved by the operator thanks to the first translation means 30 and thanks to the driving assembly 24: by activating the first translator motor 36, the first flexible tape 33 is set in motion, which slides the visor device 22 inside the first pocket 32; moreover, the driving assembly 24 sets the base body 23 in rotation, and the visor device 22 therewith, around the main rotation axis 25.

Since the first pocket 32 is arranged radially on the base body 23 with respect to the main rotation axis 25, the first translation means 30 allow the visor device 22 to move just in this radial direction and the first guide 35 is intended to guide the radial shift of the visor device 22.

On the contrary, as mentioned above, the driving assembly 24 provides the visor device 22 with circumferential motion, around the main rotation axis 25.

It should be noticed that, since the first rotational motor 37 is locked together with the visor device 22, it is moved together with the visor device 22 when the first translation means 30 are activated.

Thanks to the two radial and circumferential movements, the visor device 22 can be moved by the operator, without having to get off the motor vehicle 2, as far as overlapping the center of the field of view 75 on the center of the manhole cover 8, as shown in Figure 2.

As a result of this operation, the field of view 75 of the visor device 22 is arranged with a certain angle of inclination 76 with respect to the road drain 7, represented in Figure 2.

Therefore, the operator now drives the first rotational motor 37, which rotates the visor device 22 around the first auxiliary rotation axis 38 until the angle of inclination 76 is zero and thus aligns the field of view 75 with the road drain 7.

It is also possible, not provided for in this embodiment, to use a smart visor device 22 that can automatically position itself on the road drain 7 as described, eliminating all human intervention.

A control unit records the position and orientation taken by the visor device 22 starting from an initial home condition which is known inside a reference system of the apparatus 1. In particular, the following values are detected:

- the distance traveled by shifting inside the first pocket 32, as a result of the actuation of the first translator motor 36,

- the rotation made by the base body 23 around the main rotation axis 25, as a result of the actuation of the driving assembly 24,

- the angle of inclination 76, traveled as a result of the actuation of the first rotational motor 37.

Thanks to this information, the control unit is able to know precisely the position and orientation of the road drain 7 with respect to the reference system of the apparatus 1 and, therefore, also of the motor vehicle 2.

Then, if necessary, the nozzles 21 are activated, through which any sediments accumulated on top of the manhole cover 8, such as leaves and twigs, are blown away.

Subsequently, the apparatus 1 is rotated using the driving assembly 24, so that the removal unit 11 is placed on top of the road drain 7.

This operation is fully automated, since the visor device 22 is now no longer available and it is not possible to manually place the removal unit on the road drain 7.

The correct position and orientation of the removal unit 11 are achieved automatically, thanks to the position and orientation information of the road drain 7 previously stored by the control unit.

The removal unit 11 is moved by the second translation means 39 (along the second pocket 42), by means of the driving assembly 24 (around the main rotation axis 25) and by means of the second rotational motor 47 (around the second auxiliary rotation axis 48), in the same way as described for the visor device 22, with the difference that these operations are carried out automatically.

As with the visor device 22, the second translation means 39 set in motion not only the removal unit 11 but also the second rotational motor 47, which is in fact kinematically connected to the removal unit 11 itself.

However, unlike in the case of the visor device 22, the second translation means 39 also set in motion the second lifting means 41, which in turn are kinematically connected to the removal unit 11. The second guide 45 is intended to guide the shift along the second pocket 42, but it is more articulated and complex than the first guide 35, since it has to deal with the shift of a greater number of components.

After the removal unit 11 has been correctly placed on the road drain 7, the second lifting means 41 are actuated by the second lifting motor 51, which sets the second gear 50 in rotation, which in turn allows the substantially vertical movement of the second rack 49 and of the removal unit 11.

Thanks to this motion, the removal unit 11 is lowered until it is positioned near the manhole cover 8.

By supplying electric power to the magnets 13, they start attracting by electromagnetic force the manhole cover 8 itself, keeping it stationary in the grip position; then, by means of the second lifting means 41 operated again by the second lifting motor 51, the second rack 49, the removal unit 11 and the manhole cover 8 are lifted with respect to the ground.

At this point, always keeping the manhole cover 8 lifted, the base body 23 is automatically rotated around the main rotation axis 25 by the driving assembly 24, so as to place the scraper tool 14 on top of the road drain 7.

The correct position of the scraper tool 14 is substantially at the center of the now opened road drain 7.

This position is reached, once again, automatically and completely similarly to what has been described for the removal unit 11 , with the difference that, in this case, there is no rotation of the scraper tool 14 around the third auxiliary rotation axis 61, as it is unnecessary.

In the example shown in the figures, the scraper tool 14 coincides with the feeler element, also including the sensors 19.

Therefore, the third translation means 52, the driving assembly 24 and the third lifting means 54 are used to move the scraper tool 14 in order to locate the edge 10 of the opened road drain 7.

In particular, the scraper tool 14 is lowered inside the opened road drain 7 (as shown schematically in Figure 3), then it is made to shift until it touches the edge 10 of the road drain 7 itself. At this point, a sensor 19 detects the contact occurred and the scraper tool 14 is moved, always in an automatic way, so as to travel the entire edge 10 of the road drain 7.

Thanks to this operation, the control unit is able to know exactly the shape of the edge 10.

It is also possible, however, to detect the shape of the edge 10 with different movements from those described above, e.g., it is possible to arrange the scraper tool 14 at the center of the opened road drain 7 and impose an ever wider spiral movement, until it comes into contact with the edge 10 and to travel along it completely.

The third rotational motor 60 is now actuated, resulting in a continuous rotary motion of the scraper tool 14 around the third auxiliary rotation axis 61 (as shown in Figure 3).

The control unit now instructs the third translation means 52 and the driving assembly 24 to move the scraper tool 14 along the edge 10 just identified, so as to detach the encrusted dirt by friction.

At the end of this phase, the driving assembly 24 automatically rotates the base body 23 around the main rotation axis 25 and places the suction element 15 on top of the still opened road drain 7.

The movement of the suction element 15 is also carried out in the same way as described for the scraper tool 14 and for the removal unit 11.

In this case, however, there are no rotation means, since it is not necessary to rotate the suction element 15 around itself.

The extremity of the suction element 15 is lowered by the fourth lifting means 66 to the level of the road drain 7, then the suction is activated to remove dirt residues previously detached by the scraper tool 14, as shown in Figure 4.

This operation is also carried out automatically following the edge 10, thanks to the movements generated by the fourth translation means 65 and by the driving assembly 24.

The suction element 15 conveys the suctioned dirt to a separator 16, which separates the liquid fraction from the solid fraction: the solid fraction is conveyed further to a compactor 17, which presses it in a consolidated block to be disposed of later, while the liquid fraction is reintroduced in the road drain 7. The operations of the scraper tool 14 and of the suction element 15 do not necessarily have to be carried out in their entirety; in fact, only one of the two components may be sufficient.

For example, if the dirt on the road drain 7 is not encrusted, it can be removed with a simple suction operation, making it unnecessary to use the scraper tool 14.

If this scraper tool 14 coincides with the feeler element 18, it must also be used to detect the edge 10 of the opened road drain 7, but in any case it must not be set in rotation around the third auxiliary rotation axis 61, since in this case it is possible to switch directly to using the suction element 15.

After the operations described above have been completed, the driving assembly 24 is automatically activated to rotate the base body 23 and to place the removal unit 11 again on top of the road drain 7.

The manhole cover 8 is correctly positioned on top of the road drain 7 itself, once again thanks to the position and orientation information of the road drain 7 previously collected by the control unit, then the second lifting means 41 are operated to lower the manhole cover 8.

The power supply to the magnets 13 is now interrupted to detach the manhole cover 8 from the removal unit 11, thus closing the road drain 7.

It should be noticed that, at any time, the operator can instruct the apparatus 1 to place the visor device 22 on the road drain 7 to check that all the phases described above are carried out correctly.

For example, after the manhole cover 8 has been removed by means of the removal unit 11, it is possible to use the visor device 22 again to check the state of the dirt accumulated on the edge 10: if this dirt is not encrusted, the operator may decide to pass directly to the suction phase, without using the scraper tool 14.

Even after the suction phase, for example, the operator may decide to use the visor device 22 to check if the cleaning operation has been carried out correctly, before closing the road drain 7.

If the cleaning operation is not satisfactory, the operator may decide to repeat the scraping and/or suction operations before closing the road drain 7.

It has in practice been found that the described invention achieves the intended objects.

In particular, it should be noticed that the present apparatus for the cleaning of road drains allows simplifying the cleaning operations, making human intervention much more practical and easy compared to the prior art.

Moreover, it is evident that the present invention makes cleaning operations faster and more efficient.

Finally, the present apparatus for the cleaning of road drains is able to reduce the biological risk and the risk of occupational diseases borne by the operators involved, thus reducing the costs associated with these risks, since the operations are no longer carried out manually.