Lawn mower cleaning method and attachment
OwnerEddie A. Jamesoninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A pulsating cleaning attachment is added to an existing rotary lawn mower, and is adapted to receive a hose for cleaning the mower blade and underside surface of the lawn mower carriage. An attachment body member of the attachment includes a first upward-directed water passage selected at an angle of about thirty degrees, which passage terminates in an elliptically-shaped opening on the inner surface of said body member. This passage both forms and directs a jet stream of water exiting therefrom into and from beneath a rotating blade tip of the mower, whereby the rotating blade cuts the jet stream and creates a pulsating cleaning action for the undercarriage, blade and skirt of the mower.
Claims15
A cleaning attachment for a rotary lawn mower having a rotating blade carried by a carriage which has a curved vertically depending skirt generally surrounding the blade and terminating above the surface upon which the rotary mower sets, said cleaning attachment comprising:
- a body member having a vertical slot in an upper portion of said body member, with said slot terminating at about the midpoint of said body member, and said slot being adapted to receive said depending skirt of said carriage therein;
- a water passageway running from an outer to an inner surface of said body member, with said passageway being entirely located below the point of termination of said slot;
- said water passageway having a first essentially horizontal passage in fluid communication with a second passage angled upward at an angle selected from about twenty-five to about forty-five degrees to the horizontal;
- a hose connection formed in said outward facing surface of said body member for defining in the body member a water cavity adapted to receive water delivered to said attachment by said hose and communicating said water with said horizontal passageway;
- and
- said angled passage reduced in size relative to said horizontal passage for forming water from said hose into a jet stream, with said upward angled passage having an exit port on said inner surface of said body portion for directing said jet stream from beneath and into the tip of said rotating blade.
A method of cleaning a rotary lawn mower having a rotating blade carried by a carriage, which carriage has a vertically depending skirt generally surrounding the blade, said cleaning method comprising:
- connecting to said vertical skirt, without requiring any modification to said carriage and/or said skirt, a cleaning attachment having a body portion with a water passageway therein;
- positioning said attachment so that the water passageway therein is below the lowest edge of said skirt and runs from the outside surface of said body portion to the inner surface thereof;
- feeding water from a hose into said water passageway of said cleaning attachment;
- directing water fed from said hose into said water passageway and through said body portion of said attachment essentially in a horizontal manner from the outside of said attachment into the body portion and under the lowest edge of the carriage skirt;
- angling the water upwardly through a nozzle in said body portion, which nozzle is positioned at an angle, .phi., of about 25 to 45 degrees to the horizontal and has an exit opening on the inner surface of said body member located on the inside of said skirt;
- reducing the size of said water passageway in said cleaning attachment from about hose size at the outer water entrance of the body portion to a considerably smaller exit size on the inside of said body portion;
- forming an upwardly-directed jet stream of water by said reduction in size and selected angle for said water passageway in said body portion;
- facing the inside exit opening from beneath and upward toward the rotating blade tips of said mower;
- directing said formed jet stream from beneath and against the tip portions of the mower blade such that said jet stream strikes the rotating mower blade at or near the blade tips;
- and
- forming a pulsating cleaning action for the underside of said carriage, blade and skirt by cutting said jet stream with said rotating blade tips.
A cleaning attachment for a rotary lawn mower having a rotating blade carried by a carriage which has a generally curved vertically depending skirt surrounding the blade and terminating above the surface for said rotary mower, said cleaning attachment having a body member which includes a water passageway running through said body member from an outer to an inner surface thereof, a hose connection formed in said outer surface of said body member, and a hose-sized water cavity defined in the body member, which cavity is adapted to receive water delivered to said attachment by said hose, and said cleaning attachment is characterized by comprising:
- said body member having a vertical slot extending across the width of and located in an upper portion of said body member, with said curved slot terminating at about the midpoint of said body member, with said slot being adapted to receive said depending skirt of said carriage therein;
- a fastening means for releasably fastening said attachment to said depending skirt;
- said water passageway being located entirely below the point of termination of said slot and having a first essentially horizontal passage from said hose connection point and in fluid communication with a second passage angled upward at an angle selected at about thirty degrees to the horizontal;
- and
- both said horizontal and angled water passages in said passageway reduced in size relative to said hose-sized input for forming water from said hose into a jet stream, with said upward angled passageway having an exit port on said innermost surface of said body portion in order to direct said jet stream into the tip of said rotating blade.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.