Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The present invention relates to a hand brush having a
handle including a reservoir for cleaning liquid and a bristle
bed that has at least one liquid outlet channel therein.
Hand brushes having a reservoir for cleaning liquid or
for a cleaning paste are ~nown. In such hand brushes, the clean-
ing liquid runs either automatically out of one or a plurality of
liquid outlet channels into the bristles or else it is supplied
into the area of the bristles by operation of an outlet valve,
this being done either by hand or by expressing the liquid into
the area of the bristles through outlet channels. An uncon-
trolled outflow of cleaning liquid has been found to be disadvan-
tageous because this outflow cannot be monitored and for this
reason the cleaning liquid is expended too rapidly. Expression
of the cleaning fluid or cleaning paste leads unavoidably and for
all practical purposes to an interruption of the cleaning process
if the working area is to be supplied with cleaning liquid in a
deliberate manner. In addition, the structure of hand-controlled
valve systems has been found to be impractical and, in addition,
requires relatlvely large expenditures for the system, and this
brings about a marked increase in the cost of such hand brushes.
The present invention provides a hand brush of the
aforesaid type which permits deliberate control of the manner of
which the cleaning fluid is dispensed into the area of the brls-
tles, without the need to interrupt the cleaning procedure.
According to the present invention there is provided a
hand brush comprising a handle including a reservoir for a clean-
ing liquid mounted on a bristle bed provided with a central liq-
uid outlet channel, said liquid outlet chan~el being provided
with a movable plate-like closing element, which closing element
has a peg-like pro~ection that extends through the channel and
spaced from the wall thereof into the area of the bristles, the
portion of the projection that extends from the liquid outlet
channel into the area of the bristles being of a shorter length
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than the bristles both in their resting position and also when
normal working pressure is applied to the brush, said closing
element being biassed by a web or plate-like spring which is
supported with an edge on an inner step of the handle having a
filler opening closeable by means of a screw cap in a wall
opposite to the bristle bed.
Thus, according to the present invention, the liquid outlet
channel is provided with a movable closing element having a
pro~ection which extends into the bristle area of the hand brush,
the protruding portion of the pro;ection that protrudes from the
liquid outlet channel into the bristle area being of a shorter
length than the bristles both in their resting position and when
normal operating pressure is applied. This means that using a
hand brush of the present invention work can be performed at
normal working pressure without any fluid being dispensed from
the hand brush reservoir. It is only if an increased amount of
pressure ls applied to the hand brush that the bristles in the
bristle bed are curved more than is usual, when the closing
element pro~ection can come into contact with the area that is to `
be cleaned so that the fluid outlet channel is opened by the
closing element being raised, with the result that cleaning
liquid can be dispensed. The portion of the closing element
pro~ection that extends into the area of the bristles is
desirably made o~ a soft, non-scratching material, for example,
of shorter bristles or a shorter bundle of bristles, so that the
increased pressure on the hand brush can be exerted whilst
continuing the cleaning process without any danger than the
ob;ect that is to be cleaned will be scratched by the closlng
element pro~ection.
In a hand brush of the present invention the walls o~ the handle
portion may also be at least partially flexible so that, when
greater pressure is exerted on the brlstles, pressure wlIl also
be exerted on the handle portion, this tendlng to reduce the
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volume of the reservoir for -the cleaning liquid. This will cause
cleaning fluid being squeezed through the raised
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closing element and will make separate venting of the
reservoir unnecessary or will simplify positive ventilation
through the liquid outlet channel.
A hand brush according to the present invention may be
manufactured in a very cost-effective manner from only a few
indiviclual components. Its handle portion may advantageously
end in a filler opening that is closed by a screw cap. The
closing element may most expediently be a simple spring flap
or of a spring loaded disk having a peg-like projection that
projects spaced from its walls into the cleaning liquid
outlet channel. The closing element projection that
protrudes into and through the liquid outlet channel to the
outside ensures by the movement that it completes when it is
activated that there is simultaneously an automatic clearing
of the outlet channel and also ensures that any dried
cleaning agent residues are dissolved.
The present invention will be further described by way of the
accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is a schematic central longitudinal saction through
a round and rotationally symmetrical hand brush according to
one embodiment of the present invention; and
Figure 2 is an exploded view of the hand brush according to
Figure l;
The hand brush is rotationally symmetrical relative to an
axis 11 and has a round bristle bed 12 or 12a which on its
external side is provided with bundles 13 of bristles and has
a continuous central opening 14 that forms a liquid outlet
channel. A rotationally symmetrical hollow handle portion 15
adjoins the bristle bed 12, the inner portion of this handle
portions 15 forming a reservoir 16 for cleaning liquid, which~
can
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be filled through an upper opening 17 in the handle portion
15. The upper opening 17 of the handle portion 15 is
provided with an internal thread 18 and can be closed by an
easily grippable rounded screw cap 19.
The continuous opening 14 in the bristle bed 12 according to
Figures 1 and 2, that forms the liquid outlet channel, can be
closed on the inner side of the bristle bed by means of a
plate-shaped closing element 20 having a peg-like projection
21 that extends through the continuous opening 14 to the
lo outside. The peg-like projection 21 is made o~ a soft and
non-scratching material and can be provided with longitudinal
grooves. That portion of it that extends into the area of
the bristles 13 is significantly shorter than the length of
the bristles 13 in the rest position as shown in the Figures.
A disk spring 22 rests against the closing element 20, which
in its edge area, rests on an inner step 23 of the handle
portion 15. The disk spring 22 may be a simple curved spring
with openings (not sho~n) or can be replaced by a spring
cross piece supported with both ends on the inner side oP the
handle portion 15.
The length of the projection 21 of the closing element 20 or
20a that projects into the area of the bristles 13 is so
selected that when normal working pressure is exerted and on
the normal bending of the bristles 13 this projection still
does not come into contact with the surface that is to be
cleaned. It is only when there is increased pressure on the
hand brush exerted by the hand to perform work with the brush ~ -
that the projection 21 is affected and leads to an opening of
the liquid outlet channel 14 by the fact that the closing
element 20 or 20a is raised. The distance between the wallls
oP the outlet channel 14
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and the projection 21 or the longitudinal grooves of the pro-
jection 21 is selected so as to match the viscosity of cleaning
fluid and is sufficient for cleaning fluid to flow out through
the fluid outlet channel and air to flow in. The walls of the
handle section 15 can be flexible in part, so that when the
application pressure applied to the hand brush is increased,
pressure can be exerted on the cleaning fluid within the re-
servoir 16, which will facilitate the outflow of the cleaning
liquid. However, the reservoir 16 can also be vented by means
of a conventional flap-type valve (not shown) in the screw cap
19, and this will prevent the cleaning liquid from flowing out
when the hand brush 10 is lying at an angle.
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