GB2185372A - Pedestrian-controlled ground spraying apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To enable large areas to be sprayed without the need for frequent refills of a liquid reservoir, apparatus in the form of a wheeled trolley (10) is proposed. This has handle means (20) so that it can be pushed and, at its front end, a plurality of transversely-spaced fixed spray heads (31, 32, 33) at well as respective laterally adjustable spray heads (37, 38) which may, for example, be swingable outwardly on respective pivotal booms (35, 36). The spray heads all incorporate driven atomisers. The trolley (10) supports a liquid reservoir (26) for supplying liquid to the spray heads, a battery (24) for powering the atomisers and a control panel (23) for actuating both the atomisers and the liquid supply to the respective spray heads. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Pedestrian-controlled ground spraying apparatus This invention concerns pedestrian-controlled ground spraying apparatus.

Constructions of pedestrian-controlled ground spraying apparatus, for use, for example, for spraying herbicides or weedkillers onto pavements, pathways, and the like surfaces, are known in the form of a lance having a handle at its upper end and a spray jet at its lower end, the jet being supplied with liquid to be sprayed from a pressurised container which is to be carried by the user and may be adapted for carrying upon the user's back after the manner of a knapsack or in a knapsack.

In such arrangements, the liquid is usually diluted substantially with water, so that a substantial weight has to be carried by the user even though this may represent only a relatively small net amount of active material. The nature and extent of the spray is dependent upon the pressure within the container, and since only a relatively small container cna be employed (to enable it readily to be carried) the pressure prevailing during use changes constantly and progressively with delivery of the sprayed liquid so that the spray form and the area covered thereby is correspondingly changing. Usually the container is pressurised by means of a manually operable pump, and replenishment of the pressure may be necessary at frequent intervals.

Because of these drawbacks of the known pressure-spraying apparatus, more recently there has been a trend towards the use of low-volume controlled droplet sprayers. Such a sprayer has, at the lower end of its lance, a spray head which includes an atomiser driven by a motor powered by batteries contained in a suitable housing embodied into the lance, the spray head being fed with undiluted treatment liquid from a container which may be fixed directly to the upper end of the lance above the handle, or which may be mounted on the user's back. In this construction of ground spraying apparatus, the spray pattern produced by the spray head is substantially constant, since the atomiser is driven at a substantially constant speed, and the supply of liquid thereto under gravity is also substantially constant.Accordingly, controlled droplet sprayers find favour, especially where relatively large areas are required to be covered.

Nevertheless, these sprayers still suffer from the disadvantage that the area which can be covered thereby is restricted by the size of the container for the liquid to be sprayed.

Thus, where such a sprayer is being used on a substantial project, such as the spraying of municipal pavements for weed-killing, operation has to be discontinued temporarily at frequent intervals for the purpose of repienishing the contents of the container. Moreover, use of the sprayer still requires an element of skill on the part of the user, since the area required to be covered will, in most instances, be wider than the width of the field of spray produced by the spray head.

An object of the present invention is to provide a construction of pedestrian-controlled ground spraying apparatus wherein the above discussed difficulties and disadvantages are eliminated or minimised, which enables large areas to be sprayed without the need for frequent container-refill stops, and which permits the spraying over ground widths which are a multiple of the area which can be covered by a single spray head.

With this object in view the present invention provides pedestrian-controlled mobile ground spraying apparatus in the form of a wheeled trolley having handle means to enable it to be pushed, and having, at the front thereof, a plurality of transversely-spaced fixed spray heads, each incorporating a driven atomiser, as well as, at each side thereof, a respective laterally adjustable spray head, said trolley supporting a liquid reservoir at a level above the spray heads so that the latter may be supplied with liquid under gravity, a battery providing power to drive the atomisers, and a control panel, adjacent the handle means, for controlling the supply of liquid to the spray heads and for switching on and off the atomisers.

The laterally adjustable spray heads are preferably each carried upon the rear end of a respective boom the front end of which is pivotally mounted, to enable the boom to be swung inwards and outwards. With such an arrangement, if the boom should accidentally encounter an obstruction, such as a lamppost, or other item of road furniture, it will be deflected inwards and will not suffer damage.

The basic structure of the trolley of the apparatus of the invention may be of any suitable material, such as angle-sectioned or boxsectioned members. Conveniently, however, it is made of tubular metal. For enabling it to be propelled, the trolley preferably has a fixed rear axle with a wheel at each end, in combination with a pair of castors, at the front of the structure.

The invention will be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a preferred practical embodiment of the apparatus of the invention; and Figure 2 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1.

The preferred practical embodiment of the pedestrian-controlled mobile ground spraying apparatus of the invention, as illustrated in the drawings, is basically in the form of a trolley 10, constructed principally of tubular metal (al though it could, if desired, be made of any suitable metal sections, such as angle sections or box sections). At its bottom portion, the structure of the trolley comprises a spacedapart pair of side members 11, 12 extending in the front-to-rear direction of the trolley and joined at the front of the trolley by an integral cross-member 13 so that the side members 11, 12 and cross-member 13 provide a base which is U-shaped in plan. At the junctions between the front ends of the side members 11, 12 and the cross-member 13 respective heavy-duty castors 14 are provided beneath the base.Adjacent their rear ends, each side member 11, 12 has a respective clamp 15 secured thereto, these clamps 15 serving to secure to the base a fixed transversely-extending rear axle 16 on the ends of which are respective rear wheels 17 of the trolley 10.

Upstanding from adjacent the rear ends of the side members 11, 12 of the base, at a position behind the rear axle, are the limbs 18 of an inverted-U-shaped handle 20 the upper ends of the limbs 18 being connected by a substantially horizontal cross-piece 19 by which the trolley 10 may be gripped and manipulated.

Also extending upwards from the side members 11, 12 at a position in front of the rear axle, are first uprights 21 which are connected with the limbs 18 of the handle 20 by suitable struts 22 and serve to form, with the handle 20, a first supporting structure which serves to support, in front of the cross-piece 19 of the handle 20, a manually-operable control panel 23 which includes electrical switches for actuating liquid control valves, the function fo which will become evident later. This first supporting structure serves, also, to support at a lower level, a rechargeable battery 24.

Projecting upwardly from the side members 11, 12 about midway between the rear wheels 1 7 and the castors 14 are respective further uprights 25 which are strutted to the first uprights 21 and form, with the latter, a second supporting structure which supports, in front of the control panel 23, a large-capacity liquid reservoir 26. This reservoir 26 may, for instance, have a capacity up to about ten gallons or forty five litres, which is about twenty times as much as can conveniently be carried by a person for any considerable length of time without suffering significant fatigue.

A transverse fixed spray head carrier 30 is supported at a level below the lowest level of the liquid reservoir 26 and at a position forwardly of the front cross-member 13 of the base by means of forwardly extending members 27, 28 attached to the further uprights 25. Three spray heads 31, 32, 33 are mounted on the carrier 30, one of these (32) being disposed on the front-to-rear centre line of the trolley 10 and the other two (31, 33) being provided one at each end of the carrier 30. The spacing between these spray heads 31, 32, 33 is substantially equal to half of the width of the spray pattern which will be produced by each of the spray heads. Respective feed tubes 29 (see Fig. 1) extend from the spray heads 31, 32, 33 to the liquid reservoir 26, flow through these feed tubes 29 being regulated by respective liquid control valves actuated by the control panel switches.

A bracket 34 extending forwardly of the transverse spray head carrier 30 provides a pivotal mounting for the front ends a pair of booms 35, 36 disposed one at each side of the trolley 10 and extending rearwardly and slightly outwardly in a diverging configuration relative to the front-to-rear centre line of the trolley.These booms 35, 36 are independently swingable about their pivots from a fully retracted position in which their outer free ends lie adjacent the members 28, 29, as indicated in broken lines in the drawings, to a maximum extended position projecting substantially at right angles to the front-to-rear direction of the trolley 10, as indicated in solid lines in the drawings, Each boom 35, 36 carries a respective spray head 37, 38 at its outer free end, these spray heads 37, 38 again being connected to the liquid reservoir 26 by way of respective feed tubes (not shown) having liquid control valves actuated by switches on the control panel 23. The hinges of the booms 35, 36 include friction means so that each boom will remain in any angular disposition to which it is swung, but if desired a suitable stay may be associated with each boom 35, 36 for the same purpose.

Each spray head 31, 32, 33, 37, 38 is adjustable in its angular disposition, and includes a motor-driven atomiser, for instance of conical configuration. When liquid is supplied to the respective spray head, its atomiser, upon rotation, creates a spray of droplets of controlled size and propels the same through a slot or other suitable opening in a housing of the head. The respective motors of these spray heads 31, 32, 33, 37, 38 are connected to the battery 24 by way of other switches in the control panel 23.

The manner of operation and use of the apparatus will readily be understood from the foregoing description. With the liquid reservoir 26 filled with an appropriate liquid, such å's undiluted herbicide or weedkiller, and the battery 24 appropriately charged, the trolley can be moved over an area required to be sprayed, by a pedestrian operator simply pushing it along, the front castors 14 facilitating the guiding thereof. The liquid is supplied by operation of the respective control valves, to selected ones or all of the spray heads 31, 32, 33, 37, 38 as desired, with their atomisers being correspondingly switched on.In the event that one or another of the spray heads is not required to operate, its motor and liquid supply will, of course, be switched off, and by suitable operation of the controls, local spraying or continuous spraying can be effected as desired. For a simple central spraying width, it may be sufficient to use only the middle one 32 of the three fixed spray heads 31, 32, 33, whilst the use of the two outer fixed spray heads 32, 33 (which can be used individually if required) provides for a double width spraying pattern which can be supplemented as may be desired at one or both sides of the apparatus by use of the corresponding adjustable spray head or heads 37, 38.

In addition to the five mounted spray heads 31, 32, 33, 37, 38 as above described, the apparatus may further include a hand lance with a similar spray head connected to the reservoir by a flexible tube. This hand lance can, of course, be used for spraying areas which may be inaccessible to the mounted spray heads.

The invention is not confined to the precise details of the foregoing exmaple and variations may be made thereto, for instance in the construction of the trolley's framework, the positions of the liquid reservoir, the battery, the controls, the fixed sprayhead and (if provided) the laterally-adjustable sprayheads.

Claims (4)

1. Pedestrian-controlled mobile ground spraying apparatus in the form of a wheeled trolley having handle means to enable it to be pushed, and having, at the front thereof, a plurality of transversely-spaced fixed spray heads, each incorporating a driven atomiser, as well as, at each side thereof, a respective laterally adjustable spray head, said trolley supporting a liquid reservoir at a level above the spray heads so that the latter may be supplied with liquid under gravity, a battery providing power to drive the atomisers, and a control panel, adjacent the handle means, for controlling the supply of liquid to the spray heads and for switching on and off the atomisers.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the laterally adjustable spray heads are each carried upon the rear end of a respective boom the front end of which is pivotally mounted, to enable the boom to be swung inwards and outwards.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein the trolley has a fixed rear axle with a wheel at each end and a pair of castors, at the front of the structure.

4. Pedestrian-controlled mobile ground spraying apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.