IE20120122U1 - Door handle cleaning apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT An apparatus (60) for dispensing a spray of disinfectant liquid on to a door handle (61), or door push plate, comprising a housing (63), having a spray head (71,75), an actuating arm (82) to operate the spray head, characterised in that the actuating arm engages with an operating mechanism (85,86) to operate the spray head.

Description

The present invention relates to a door handle cleaning apparatus and in particular relates to a self- cleaning door handle. The invention will have particular application in relation to toilet door handles, particularly where they are used by many people on a daily basis.

With the spread of disease and infection from surfaces, such as door handles, which are contacted by many individuals, a need arises for the regular cleaning or disinfection of such surfaces. In particular. this problem arises in Hospitals and other establishments where there is a likely to be a considerable amount of bacteria or other germs. The problem also occurs in public bathrooms and toilets where some individuals fail to wash their hands. In View of this concern many individuals try to open doors, particularly toilet doors with the minimum amount of hand contact with the door.

According to the invention there is provided an apparatus for dispensing a spray of disinfectant liquid on to a door handle, or door push plate, comprising a housing, having a spray head, an actuating arm operatively associated with a door frame in which the door is mounted, such that opening or closing of the door causes movement of the actuating arm to operate the spray head, characterised in that the actuating arm engages with an operating mechanism to operate the spray head.

Preferably. the operating mechanism comprises an operating lever arranged to compress the spray head for a predetermined distance.

Preferably there is provided a release member which cooperates with the operating lever to discontinue compression of the spray head.

Preferably the operating lever has an inclined surface which cooperates with the release member.

Preferably the operating lever is pivotally mounted on a moveable block (83).

Preferably the actuating arm is attached to the block.

Preferably the actuating arm is mounted substantially horizontally.

Preferably the block is spring urged away from the spray head.

Preferably the spray head comprises a boss and a spray nozzle.

Preferably the boss has a recess to enable release of the operating lever from the boss when a spray has been dispensed from the nozzle.

Preferably the spray head is mounted in a housing.

Preferably an end of the actuating arm has a wheel or castor.

Preferably the housing has a support ledge for supporting a reservoir container of disinfectant fluid.

Preferably a connector needle communicates with the container and a conduit to enable fluid flow from the container to the nozzle.

Preferably the connector needle is mounted in a support boss fixed on the ledge.

In a preferred form of the invention, the apparatus comprises a reservoir of disinfectant liquid, contained within a closable housing, and a spray head associated with the housing to spray the disinfectant liquid on to the handle when the door is opened or closed.

The reservoir of fluid is preferably mounted within the housing above the spray head.

The reservoir of fluid is preferably mounted on a support member or support ledge.

An outlet from the reservoir is preferably located at the top of the reservoir and in turn connects to a pair of spray heads.

Preferably the housing has a cover mounted thereon, which may be moved to expose the reservoir to enable a replacement reservoir to be used.

The cover is preferably hingedly mounted to the bottom of the housing.

Preferably a secondary cover is provided which engages over the spray heads.

The spray head is preferably operated by an actuating means.

The actuating means preferably comprises an actuating arm, which is operatively associated with the doorframe such that opening or closing of the door causes movement of the actuating arm to operate the spray head. lEt2o122p A cam member is in use preferably provided on the doorframe to move the actuating arm to operate the spray head. Preferably the actuating arm is in use spring urged against the cam member.

Preferably the length of the actuating member is adjustable.

In one embodiment the spray head preferably comprises a pair of spray outlets in use disposed above the door handle. The spray outlets are preferably directed at opposite sides of the door handle.

Preferably the door handle is elongate. The door handle is preferably freely rotatable.

In another form of the invention the actuating means preferably comprises an actuating arm, which is operatively associated with the door frame such that opening or closing of the door causes movement of the actuating member in a substantially horizontal direction to operate the spray head.

The spray head is preferably operated on closing of the door.

The actuating means preferably comprises a housing having a pivoted operating lever arranged to move with the actuating member.

The operating lever is arranged to operate the spray head as the actuating member moves horizontally.

Preferably a cam member acts to release the operating lever when the spray head has been operated to release the spray head.

In this embodiment, preferably there is provided a single spray head.

Preferably the single spray head is mounted in a housing having a boss, such that the boss pushes against a spray nozzle.

Preferably the boss has a recess to enable release of the operating [ever when a spray head has been activated.

Preferably there is provided a reservoir of fluid mounted above the actuating means.

Preferably the reservoir of fluid is mounted on a support member or support ledge. lE12o122 ‘ 4 The reservoir of fluid preferably comprises a container having an outlet nipple which in use is engaged with a connector member mounted on the support member or support ledge.

The connector member preferably has a connector needle which pierces the outlet nipple on the container in a sealing manner such that fluid can pass from the container through the needle and into a conduit which communicates with the spray head.

In a preferred form of the invention, the reservoir of fluid is contained within a closable housing, the housing having a cover mounted thereon which may be moved to enable replacement of the fluid reservoir.

Preferably the cover is pivotally mounted on the housing.

It will be noted that the reference to a door handle will also include a push plate mounted on a door surface. Therefore, in another aspect, the invention provides an apparatus for applying a disinfectant to a door surface each time a door is opened or closed. The door surface may include one or more push plates.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; Figure 1 is a front view of an embodiment of a cleaning apparatus according to the invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of a cam member for mounting on a doorframe; Figures 3A and 3B are side views of the cam member with the actuating member in two different positions; Figure 4 is a view of the top of the actuating member; Figure 5A, 5B and 5C illustrate various positions of the cam member during opening and closing of a doon Figure 6 is a front elevation view of the housing according to the invention with the operating rod in one position; Figure 7 is a front elevation of the housing of the invention with the operating rod in a second position; Figure 8 is an underneath planned view of the housing of Figure 7; Figure 9 is a perspective view of the housing of Figure 7 according to the invention; Figure 10 is an exploded perspective view of a spray nozzle and housing for the nozzle; Figure 11 is a perspective view of the reservoir as contained in the housing; Figures 12a and 12b are views of the apparatus with the cover member in a ciosed position and in an open position; Figure 13 is a front view of another embodiment of cleaning apparatus according to the invention; Figure 14 is a front view of the apparatus of Figure 13 with the cover removed; Figure 15 is a part-sectional view of the cam member mounted on a door frame; Figure 16 is a right side view of the apparatus of Figure 14; Figure 17 is a left side view of the apparatus of Figure 14; Figure 18 is a schematic view of the cam member mounted on a door frame; Figure 19 is a perspective view of the apparatus of Figure 14; Figures 20a and 20b are sectional views of the actuating means of the apparatus of Figure 14; Figures 21a and 21b are schematic views of the operating lever of the actuating means; Figure 22 is an end view of the actuating means of Figure 20a; Figure 23 is an end view of the spray head housing of Figure 20a; lE1201 40 Figure 24 is an underneath view of the spray head housing of Figure 19; Figure 25 is a perspective view of the operating lever; and Figure 26 is a perspective view of the boss of the spray head housing.

Referring now to the Figures, there is shown therein an apparatus 10 for dispensing a spray disinfectant liquid on to a handle 11 or push plate (not shown) mounted on a door 12. The handle 11 is freely rotatable about its vertical axis. In another embodiment, the handle 11 may be mounted horizontally.

The apparatus 10 comprises a housing 13 having a cover 14 in the form of a U shaped member.

The cover 14 is hinged to a bottom end 15 of the housing 13 at 16, 17. The cover 14 may therefore pivot upwardly and downwardly to completely enclose the housing 13 and a lock mechanism (not shown) is provided to lock the cover 14 to the housing 13.

The housing 13 has two sections namely an upper section 18 and a lower section 19, with the lower section 19 having a pair of nozzle housings 20 each of which has a spray nozzle 21 as will be described further.

The lower section 19 also has a cover plate 22 which engages on the lower section 19 so that the housings 20 and nozzles 21 are not visible even when the cover 14 is in an open position.

In addition, the cover plate 22 has a pair of brackets 23 each of which engages with a respective nozzle 21 when the cover 22 is in place. The brackets 23 engage the end surfaces of the nozzles 21.

As shown in Figure 10, each nozzle housing 20 contains the nozzle 21 and also a boss 25 in which the nozzle 21 is engaged.

Since the end of the nozzle 21, abuts against the bracket 23, then movement of the boss 25 axially towards the nozzle 21, compresses the nozzle to eject fluid which is supplied as will be described below.

A block 30 is mounted on an actuating rod 31 so that vertical movement downwardly of the actuating rod causes the boss 25 to be pushed inwardly against the spray head 21 to provide a spray as indicated in Figure 7.

IE120122 7 A conduit 32 is connected to each boss and spray head 21 through the block 30.

A support ledge 35 is provided on the housing 30 and effectively defines the upper section 18 and lower section 19.

A reservoir 36 of disinfectant fluid, as show in Figure 11, is supported on the ledge or bracket 35 and as shown, the reservoir has a central cutaway section 37.

The cut away section 3? enables the conduits 32 to pass vertically upwards where they join in a connection 38 and continue on as a single conduit 39. Also, the space 37 provides ample space for the operating rod 31 to extend upwardly.

The conduit 39 then enters the top of the reservoir 36 which may for example be a plastics disposable container. Alternatively, the container may be of the refill type.

As shown in Figure 9, the rod 31 is biased in an upward position by a coil spring 41.

Adjacent the top of the door 12, there is provided a cam mechanism as shown in Figures 2 and 5A- 5C. The cam member comprises a base 50 and a cam lever 51 which is pivoted at 52 and spring biased at 53. The top of the rod 31 has a wheel or castor 55. As shown, the position of the rod 31 when the door is closed is shown as Figure 3B. As the door is opened, the rod 31, pushes against the cam lever 51 which pivots away at right angles to let the rod 31 move out in front of the cam lever 51. Figure 3A shows the operating member 31 with the doorjust having been opened. Therefore, as the door now closes, the operating lever 31 engages with the cam lever 51 pushing the operating member 31 downwardly until it is released behind the cam lever 51 once again and moves upwardly again. Clearly, as the lever 31 moves downwardly, it forces the block 30 in the lower section 19, downwardly so that the boss 35 acts against the spray jet 21 to provide a spray to the handle 11 mounted on the door.

The process is repeated each time the door is opened and closed so that a spray of disinfectant is provided to the door handle on operation of the door.

It will be appreciated that the spray head may be operated by any suitable form of actuating means.

Thus, the actuating member 31 may be operated by having it operatively associated with the doorframe, or in any other preferred way so that opening or closing of the door causes the spray head to activate and spray a jet of disinfectant onto the door handle.

IEt201 40 The door handle 11 is preferably rotatable about its own axis so that different portions of the handle are randomly exposed to the optimum position for receiving a spray from the spray head. It will be noted however that even if the handle did not rotate extensively, a reasonable spray of liquid would reach most of the handle surface.

The invention has particular advantages in that the cover 14 is readily lockable to the housing 13 and also may be released easily to enable an attendant to replace the reservoir 36, without tampering with the spray heads. Also, since the outlet from the reservoir 36 is at the uppermost part of the housing 13, there is little prospective of any inadvertent leakage from the reservoir 36.

It is envisaged that a transparent section may be built into the cover 14 so that an operator may view the reservoir 36 without having to remove the cover 14. I Referring now in particular to Figures 13-26, there is shown therein another embodiment of an apparatus 60 for dispensing a spray of disinfectant liquid on to a door handle 61 (or door push plate) mounted on a door 62. The handle 61 is freely rotatable about its vertical axis. in another embodiment, the handle 61 or other type of handle may be mounted horizontally.

The apparatus 60 comprises a housing 63 having a cover 64 in the form of a u-shaped member similar to that shown in Figure 12b. The cover 64 is hinged to a bottom end of the housing 63. The cover 64 may therefore pivot upwardly and downwardly to completely enclose the housing 63. A lock mechanism (not shown) may be provided to lock the cover 64 to the housing 63.

The housing 63 has two sections namely an upper section 68 and a lower section 69 with the lower section 69 having a housing 70 for a spray head which has a spray nozzle 71 as will be further described below.

The nozzle housing 70 contains the spray head comprising nozzle 71 and also a boss 75 with which the nozzle 71 is engaged.

Since the end of the nozzle 71 abuts against the end of the housing 70, then movement of the boss 75 axially towards the nozzle 71, compresses the nozzle head to eject fluid which is supplied as will be described below.

An operating mechanism comprises a housing 81 and an actuating arm 82 which moves substantially horizontally so that horizontal movement of the actuating arm 82 causes the boss 75 to be pushed inwardly against the spray head 71 to provide a spray as indicated in Figure 16. As lE120122i shown more clearly in Figures 14 and 19, the housing 81 is generally u-shaped and has a recess within which is mounted a block 83 which is attached to the actuating arm 82. The block 83 is spring biased by a spring 84 in a direction away from the spray nozzle 71.

The block 83 has pivotally attached thereto an operating lever 85 which projects toward the spray head 71. A release member 86 is provided within the housing 81 which co-operates with an inclined surface 87 on the lever 85 so that as the lever 85 moves horizontally against the boss 75, it eventually rises upwardly to clear a recess 88 in the boss 75 and thus to release the pressure on the boss 75. On release the boss 75 returns to its original position under force from the nozzle 71.

In Figure 20a, the operating mechanism is shown in its neutral state so that the spray head 71 is not compressed and in Figure 20b, the actuating arm 82 is forced towards the nozzle 71 (as the door 12 closes) so that the lever 85 pushes against the boss 75 and in turn against the spray head 71 to actuate the spray nozzle and on release, the spray head 75 returns the boss to its neutral position.

As shown in Figure 18, a cam member 90 is pivotally mounted adjacent a doorjam 91 so that as the door closes, the actuating arm 82 is moved horizontally by the cam member to move the block 83 and lever 85 to operate the spray head. The end of the arm 82 has a wheel or castor 95 and the operation of the cam mechanism is similar to that previously described with regard to Figures 3a and 3b.

The door handle 61 is preferably rotatable about its own axis so that different portions of the handle are randomly exposed to the optimum position for receiving a spray from the spray head. It will be noted however that even if the handle did not rotate extensively, a reasonable spray of liquid would reach most of the handle surface.

A conduit 100 is connected to the boss 75 and spray nozzle 71 through the housing 70.

A support ledge 101 is provided on the housing 63. The support ledge 101 effectively defines the upper section 68 and lower section 69. A reservoir or container 102 of disinfectant fluid, as shown in Figure 19, is supported on the ledge 101 and has a cutaway section 103 in the lower left hand corner. The reservoir 102 has an outlet nipple 104 located in the cut away section 103. In use, the outlet nipple 104 is pierced by a connector needle 105 which in turn communicates with the conduit 100 to enable fluid to flow from the container to the nozzle 71. The connector needle 105 is mounted in a support boss 106 fixed on top of the ledge 101. lE12o1The invention has particular advantages in that it provides for a very compact aesthetic apparatus with a short actuating arm 82. In addition, the particular actuating means including the operating lever 85 provides an effective and simple operating mechanism to activate the nozzle 71. In addition, the reservoir 102 having the nipple 104 and needle 105 arrangement ensures excellent sealing engagement between the reservoir 102 and the needle 105 so that fluid leakage is prevented. In this regard, the nipple 104 may be a rubberised or plastic type element which provides sealing with the needle 105. In addition, on replacing a reservoir 102 it is simply necessary to remove the cover of the apparatus and then move the new reservoir or container 102 sideways to remove the empty container and in replacing a refill, it is simply supported on the ledge 101 and then pushed sideways to engage the nipple 104 with the needle 105.

It will be appreciated that the cover 64 will have an opening on its lower side (not shown) to enable the spray from the nozzle 71 to reach the handle 61.

The apparatus 10, 60 may be provided with a viewing window (not shown) so that the level of liquid in the container 36, 102 may be ascertained. Alternatively, an indicator means (not shown) may be provided to indicate the level of liquid in the container. Such an indicator means may for example be a visual indicator, for example light source or LED etc.

The invention provides a simple. reliable and inexpensive door handle cleaning apparatus which has particular applications in many environments including Hospitals, restaurants etc. The invention will assist in reducing the spread of bacteria and infection by reducing or eliminating contamination on door handle surfaces commonly touched by many individuals.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein which may be amended or modified without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (1)

1. CLAIMS 151201 An apparatus (60) for dispensing a spray of disinfectant liquid on to a door handle (61), or door push plate, comprising a housing (63), having a spray head (71, 75), an actuating arm (82) operatively associated with a door frame in which the door (12) is mounted, such that opening or closing of the door causes movement of the actuating arm (82) to operate the spray head, characterised in that the actuating arm engages with an operating mechanism (85, 86) to operate the spray head. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the operating mechanism comprises an operating lever (85) arranged to compress the spray head for a predetermined distance. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 2 wherein there is provided a release member (86) which cooperates with the operating lever (85) to discontinue compression of the spray head (71). An apparatus as claimed in Claim 3 wherein the operating lever (85) has an inclined surface (87) which cooperates with the release member (86). An apparatus as claimed in any one of Claims 2-4, wherein the operating lever (85) is pivotally mounted on a moveable block (83).