A floor scrubber is a floor cleaning device. It can be a simple tool such as a floor mop or floor brush, or in the form of a walk-behind or a ride-on machine to clean larger areas by injecting water with cleaning solution, scrubbing, and lifting the residue off the floor. With advancements in

robotics Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrat ...

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ow ...

floor-scrubbing robots are available as well.

Automatic floor scrubbers

Automatic floor scrubbers, also known as auto scrubbers, are a type of

floor A floor is the bottom surface of a room or vehicle. Floors vary from simple dirt in a cave to many layered surfaces made with modern technology. Floors may be stone, wood, bamboo, metal or any other material that can support the expected load ...

cleaning

machine A machine is a physical system using Power (physics), power to apply Force, forces and control Motion, movement to perform an action. The term is commonly applied to artificial devices, such as those employing engines or motors, but also to na ...

that are used to scrub a floor clean of light

debris Debris (, ) is rubble, wreckage, ruins, litter and discarded garbage/refuse/trash, scattered remains of something destroyed, or, as in geology, large rock fragments left by a melting glacier, etc. Depending on context, ''debris'' can refer to ...

dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

, grease or floor marks. These machines have either a rotary (disk) or

cylindrical A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infini ...

scrubbing head and an automated system for dispensing cleaning

solution Solution may refer to: * Solution (chemistry), a mixture where one substance is dissolved in another * Solution (equation), in mathematics ** Numerical solution, in numerical analysis, approximate solutions within specified error bounds * Soluti ...

and then vacuuming it up. So, in one pass over the floor, a user can dispense a

cleaning agent Cleaning agents or hard-surface cleaners are substances (usually liquids, powders, sprays, or granules) used to remove dirt, including dust, stains, bad smells, and clutter on surfaces. Purposes of cleaning agents include health, beauty, removin ...

, scrub it into the floor, then

vacuum A vacuum is a space devoid of matter. The word is derived from the Latin adjective ''vacuus'' for "vacant" or "void". An approximation to such vacuum is a region with a gaseous pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. Physicists often dis ...

it all up with an autoscrubber

squeegee A squeegee or squilgee is a tool with a flat, smooth rubber blade, used to remove or control the flow of liquid on a flat surface. It is used for cleaning and in printing. The earliest written references to squeegees date from the mid-19th cent ...

attachment at the back of the machine. Auto scrubbers have a separate dispensing (solution) tank and collection (recovery) tank to keep the clean water separate from the dirty water and can be categorized into one of three main types: walk behind, stand-on, and rider. Floor scrubbers are a more hygienic alternative to traditional cleaning methods such as a mop and bucket. Environmentally safe soaps can be used in conjunction with a reduced water system to save on both the amount of chemicals released into the environment as well as the amount of gray water produced. Some scrubbers are even capable of cleaning without a water and chemical system at all. Most autoscrubbers cannot reach edges, corners, clean under obstructions such as drinking fountains, and cannot fit into alcoves. Therefore, mopping is needed to clean areas the autoscrubber cannot reach. Some manufacturers now produce floor scrubbers with orbital or oscillating brush decks, allowing edges, corners and overhangs to be fully cleaned. Modern floor scrubbers have a pre-sweep option that removes the need to sweep the floor before scrubbing. The pre-sweep brush head is placed in front of the vacuum system to collect dust and debris before it can block the vacuum system. In the past it was important to sweep the floor before scrubbing to remove any debris and dust that could clog the vacuum hose or build up in the vacuum motor, which can decrease performance. If this happens, the hose may need to be removed to clear the obstruction and/or the motor may need to be blown out with compressed air. Stripping solution should never be used as it can cause damage to the solution dispensing system, but can still be vacuumed up by the machine without harm. Occasionally, the solution system should be flushed with water mixed with vinegar to remove any soap and calcium deposits that could build in the solution system. After each use, the dispensing (solution) and especially the collection (recovery) tanks should be emptied and rinsed out to prevent dirt build up. The pads/brushes, vacuum hose, and squeegee should also be rinsed to prevent dirt buildup. The motor should be run for several minutes afterwards to remove any moisture that could be present in the motor to reduce chances of corrosion that could damage the vac motor. Failure to do this maintenance can result in a loss of vacuum airflow and increase in costly repairs.

Types of heads

There are three common types of automatic floor scrubber heads: disk, cylindrical, and square oscillating. Disk style floor scrubbers, the most common type, use a circular motion with a round pad or brush to agitate a cleaning solution against the floor to release soils. Disk floor scrubber heads work best on smooth floors. Using counter-rotating, tube-style brushes that rotate perpendicular to the floor, cylindrical floor scrubbers clean rough or uneven surfaces. Cylindrical brushes usually have a collection tray behind the brushes that can pick up larger debris such as rocks and screws. This reduces the need to sweep or dust mop prior to scrubbing, although it is still a good idea if possible. Similar to the disk style, square oscillating floor scrubbers use a flat pad to scrub the floor. The difference is that instead of spinning, it moves in a vibrating motion at a much faster speed. The square design allows for cleaning closer to walls and in corners. The high speed motion and down pressure also allow this style of floor scrubber head to be useful for removing floor finish from vinyl composite tile and well as prepare wood floors for refinishing. A specialized abrasive pad is used for these procedures.

Floor buffers and polishers

When floor scrubbing machines became more available to many types of facilities, there was a need to cover a different type of

flooring Flooring is the general term for a permanent covering of a floor, or for the work of installing such a floor covering. Floor covering is a term to generically describe any finish material applied over a floor structure to provide a walking surface ...

. Floor buffers or rotary floor machines were invented to scrub and polish the floor with

linoleum Linoleum, sometimes shortened to lino, is a floor covering made from materials such as solidified linseed oil (linoxyn), Pine Resin, pine resin, ground Cork (material), cork dust, sawdust, and mineral fillers such as calcium carbonate, most com ...

surface. The machines use rotary brushes with soft material to clean and make the floor shine. For marble and wood floors, floor polishers may be used to apply protective coating to floor. It is also known as a floor burnisher if it is a high speed floor buffer with a pad that rotates at over 1000 RPM. Closely resembling a large upright, wide-based

vacuum cleaner A vacuum cleaner, also known simply as a vacuum or a hoover, is a device that causes suction in order to remove dirt from floors, upholstery, draperies, and other surfaces. It is generally electrically driven. The dirt is collected by either a ...

with handlebar controls and requiring, until familiar with the machine, two-handed steering, a floor buffer uses one or more variable-speed circular rotary brushes to dislodge

dirt Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include: * Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains * Dust: a genera ...

and

from and apply a polished finish to flat surfaces. They have a large, round scrubbing pad which is spun in one direction by a small

motor An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

, usually mounted directly over the center of the pad. Larger powered floor buffers are used in

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

office An office is a space where an Organization, organization's employees perform Business administration, administrative Work (human activity), work in order to support and realize objects and Goals, plans, action theory, goals of the organizati ...

s and

public buildings A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory (although there's also portable buildings). Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and funct ...

. These have wheels and are powered to allow the user to easily move and clean items stuck on floors. Scaled-down versions are available for home use and often sold as hard floor cleaners.

Floor-scrubbing robots

Residential

Floor-scrubbing robots are also available in a small form factor for residential applications. The Scooba by

iRobot iRobot Corporation is an American technology company that designs and builds consumer robots. It was founded in 1990 by three members of MIT's Artificial Intelligence Lab, who designed robots for space exploration and military defense. The com ...

is one example.

References