The present invention relates to entry rug cleaning assemblies which remove loose soil from the soles of the shoes of persons passing thereover and in which the surface of the rug is cleaned periodically.
In applicant's prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,526,015 granted Sept. 1, 1970, there is disclosed an entry rug cleaning mechanism which has enjoyed commercial acceptance and which has proven quite useful in cleaning and disinfecting the soles of shoes of persons passing thereover into a building. In this installation, the rug is mounted so that it may be rotated about a closed loop, and within an adjacent housing disposed below the traffic surface are vacuum cleaning and washing installations for cleaning the surface of the rug passing thereover.
Self cleaning entry rug installations of this type are extremely desirable from the standpoint that fresh rug surface may be provided to effectively remove soil from the soles of the persons passing thereover and they are able to provide a relatively clean rug surface from an aesthetic standpoint as compared with fixed rug installations for this purpose.
Although the installations of applicant's prior patent have provided substantial benefits, location of the cleaning components outside the belt loop increases the space required for the installation and does not provide optimum cleaning action since the area available for cleaning action is always a vertical portion of the belt loop. Moreover, frequent servicing of the cleaning components has been required.
In addition, replacement of the rug was frequently difficult and time consuming, and the tendency of the rug to stretch required constant adjustment of the tension.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel self-cleaning entry rug assembly providing enhanced cleaning action and adapted for facile servicing and relatively trouble free operation.
It is also an object to provide such an entry rug assembly in which the components may be readily fabricated and assembled from relatively durable elements to provide a rugged installation.
Another object is to provide such an entry rug assembly which is adapted to fully automatic control, semi-automatic control, or manual operation.
Still another object is to provide such an assembly which may be linked to presence sensors or approach sensors to limit operation during the time when persons are passing thereover.