Apparatus for cleaning a filter press

Apparatus for cleaning the plates of a filter press, comprising a support mounted above said press for movement along the longitudinal axis of said press, a trolley mounted on said support for reciprocal movement transversely to the axis of the press from one side to the other, a standpipe mounted on said trolley to swing between a horizontal position and a vertical position, and a unitary drive system for sequentially swinging said standpipe from said horizontal to said vertical position and for moving said trolley from said one side to the other and thereafter reversing the movement of said trolley and the swinging of said standpipe, said standpipe being mounted on a freely-swivelable shaft, journalled in said trolley to be normally dependent from the horizontal position, and said drive system including a motor and a transmission comprising first means mounted on said trolley coupled to said motor for idling therewith, and second means responsive to the displacement of said standpipe from the horizontal position, for securing said first means against idling, said first and second means being cooperable on the movement of said motor, in one direction, to permit said standpipe to be displaced into its vertical position and thereafter on securement of said first means to move said trolley across said support and on the movement of said motor, in the other direction, to maintain said first means secure--to reverse said trolley and thereafter to displace said standpipe in its horizontal position.