JP7786363B2 - car wash machine - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a car wash machine for washing vehicles.

The water used in car washes can be tap water (surface water, groundwater, etc.) or industrial water. For example, tap water contains residual chlorine used for disinfection, as well as minerals such as sodium, calcium, and magnesium. Therefore, if water droplets remaining on the vehicle surface after washing dry, these impurities will remain on the vehicle surface as ion deposits (water spots).

In recent years, car washes that use pure water for washing have been developed to reduce these ion deposits.

Conventional car washes capable of using pure water include fully pure water car washes, which use pure water in all car wash processes, and pure water finishing car washes, which use pure water only in the final rinsing process. Compared to regular washing water, the use of pure water is costly. Pure water finishing car washes offer cost advantages by reducing the amount of pure water used. An example of a pure water finishing car wash is the car wash device described in Patent Document 1.

JP 2016-60329 A

Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle washing system that includes a pure water generator that generates pure water and a finish washing unit that sprays the pure water generated by the pure water generator onto a vehicle that has been washed by a brush washing unit to perform a finish washing. In the vehicle washing system described in Patent Document 1, after washing by the brush washing device, a finish washing is performed by the finish washing unit.

Further reduction of ion deposits is desired when washing cars using such finishing pure water car washes. It is thought that ion deposits can be reduced by increasing the amount of pure water used in the rinsing process, but this increases costs.

In order to solve the above problems, one aspect of the present invention provides a car wash machine comprising a car wash machine main body that washes vehicles, a first washing mechanism that sprays washing liquid, a second washing mechanism that sprays pure water with lower electrical conductivity than the washing liquid, and a control unit that controls the car wash machine main body, the first washing mechanism, and the second washing mechanism. The car wash machine main body is equipped with a blower that generates an airflow, and the control unit performs a car wash process that includes a washing step that controls the first washing mechanism to wash the vehicle, a water draining step that controls the blower to drain the washing liquid, and a finish washing step that controls the second washing mechanism to finish washing the vehicle.

According to one aspect of the present invention, ion deposits can be reduced compared to car washing using a conventional finishing pure water car wash without increasing the amount of pure water used.

1 is a schematic front view showing a car wash machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic side view showing a car wash machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a car wash machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a car wash process performed by a control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Embodiment]
Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

Figure 1 is a schematic front view of a car wash machine 2 according to this embodiment. Figure 2 is a schematic side view of a car wash machine according to this embodiment. Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a car wash machine according to this embodiment.

(Car wash machine configuration)
The car wash machine 2 is a pure water finishing car wash machine. More specifically, the car wash machine 2 is capable of performing a car wash process including a washing process involving brushing and a finish washing process using pure water. The water used in the washing process performed by the car wash machine 2 is referred to as washing liquid, and the water used in the finish washing process is referred to as pure water.

In this disclosure, the cleaning liquid is, for example, clean water (tap water) derived from surface water, groundwater, or other sources, or industrial water. Cleaning liquids vary depending on the region from which they are taken and the type of raw water, but typically have an electrical conductivity of approximately 70 to 300 μS/cm. Pure water is water with a lower electrical conductivity than the cleaning liquid. For example, the electrical conductivity of pure water according to this disclosure may be 0 μS/cm or higher and 20 μS/cm or lower.

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the car wash machine 2 includes a car wash machine main body 4, a first cleaning mechanism 60, and a second cleaning mechanism 70. The first cleaning mechanism 60 is a mechanism for spraying cleaning liquid onto the vehicle X and includes a first tank 62, a first passage 61 that supplies cleaning liquid to the car wash machine main body 4, and a first nozzle 24 and a second nozzle 26 that spray cleaning liquid onto the vehicle X. The first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26 are nozzles included in the car wash machine main body 4 and will be described in detail later. The first tank 62 is a tank that stores cleaning liquid and includes a first pump P1. The first pump P1 can be controlled by the control unit 44, which will be described later. The first tank 62 is not required for the first cleaning mechanism 60, and the first passage 61 may be connected to a water pipe or the like via a valve that can be controlled to open and close. In this case, the valve can be controlled by the control unit 44.

The second cleaning mechanism 70 is a mechanism for spraying pure water onto the vehicle X, and includes a pure water generator 73, a second tank 72, a second path 71 for supplying pure water to the car wash machine body, and a first nozzle 24 and a second nozzle 26 for spraying pure water onto the vehicle X. The first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26 are used for spraying both cleaning liquid and pure water. In other words, the nozzle for spraying cleaning liquid in the first cleaning mechanism 60 and the nozzle for spraying pure water in the second cleaning mechanism 70 are the same. The pure water generator 73 is a device that reduces the electrical conductivity of the liquid. The pure water generator 73 may be a device that generates pure water using, for example, a reverse osmosis membrane method. The second tank 72 is a tank that stores the pure water generated by the pure water generator 73, and includes a second pump P2. The second pump P2 can be controlled by the control unit 44, which will be described later. The pure water according to the present disclosure may be water produced by a pure water production device 73 and having an electrical conductivity of 0 μS/cm or more and 6 μS/cm or less.

The second path 71 merges with the first path 61 upstream of the car wash machine main body 4. The first path 61, which supplies the cleaning liquid, may be connected to the car wash machine main body 4, and the second path 71, which supplies the pure water, may be connected to the first path 61 upstream of the connection. In this case, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the car wash machine main body 4 via the first path 61, and the pure water is supplied to the car wash machine main body 4 via the second path 71 and a portion of the first path 61. Alternatively, the first path 61 and the second path 71 may merge and connect to a single path 80, which is connected to the car wash machine main body 4. In this case, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the car wash machine main body 4 via the first path 61 and path 80, and the pure water is supplied to the car wash machine main body 4 via the second path 71 and path 80.

The car wash machine 2 further includes a remote panel 6 that acquires the washing conditions for vehicle X from the car wash machine main body 4. In Figure 2, the outline of vehicle X is shown with a dotted line to indicate that vehicle X is located further back than the remote panel 6.

In this specification, a sedan-type vehicle will be used as an example of vehicle X. For example, vehicle X has, on its upper surface, a hood, a windshield, a roof, a rear window, and a trunk, in that order from the front. However, in this specification, the type and shape of vehicle X are not particularly limited as long as it can be washed by the car wash machine main body 4.

(Configuration of the car wash machine body)
1, the car wash machine main body 4 includes, for example, two frames 8 and a ceiling portion 10 connecting the upper ends of the two frames 8. The car wash machine main body 4 is configured to allow a vehicle X to pass through a space 4S surrounded by the frames 8 and the ceiling portion 10 along an approach direction DA of the vehicle X, as shown in FIG. 2. Note that in this specification, the approach direction DA is defined as the direction from the front surface 4A toward the rear surface 4B of the car wash machine main body 4. Note that in this embodiment, the front surface 4A is the surface on which, for example, an operation panel 42, which will be described later, is provided.

The car wash machine main body 4 comprises a drive unit 4X and a cleaning unit 4Y. The drive unit 4X comprises wheels 12 mounted on the bottom of each frame 8 and a drive device 11 that drives the wheels 12 to rotate. As the drive device 11 drives the wheels 12 to rotate, the car wash machine main body 4 moves in the longitudinal direction relative to the vehicle X along rails R arranged on the ground G. The rails R are formed, for example, along the approach direction DA. Here, the car wash machine main body 4 moves relative to the vehicle X while cleaning (washing) the vehicle X in the space 4S.

The cleaning unit 4Y is equipped with multiple rotating brushes that slide over and brush the vehicle X. For example, the cleaning unit 4Y includes a top brush 14, side brushes 16, and rocker brushes 18, each of which is rotated by a rotary motor (not shown). The top brush 14 slides along the top surface of the vehicle X, cleaning the top surface of the vehicle X. The side brushes 16 and rocker brushes 18 clean both side surfaces of the vehicle X.

The cleaning unit 4Y also has multiple nozzles that spray liquid toward the vehicle X. The multiple nozzles include a first nozzle 24 and a second nozzle 26. The first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26 are nozzles that spray cleaning liquid or pure water toward the vehicle X. As shown in FIG. 2, the first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26 may be arranged, for example, on the front surface 4A and the rear surface 4B of each frame 8 of the car wash machine main body 4, respectively. In addition to the first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26, nozzles that spray cleaning liquid or pure water may also be arranged on the ceiling portion 10.

The car wash machine main body 4 has a first connection pipe that connects a passage 80 located outside the car wash machine main body 4 with the first nozzle 24 and second nozzle 26. The first connection pipe includes a distribution pipe section 22 that distributes the liquid that flows in via the passage 80 to each nozzle, and a drainage passage 23 that communicates with the distribution pipe section 22. The first nozzle 24 and second nozzle 26 are each led out from the distribution pipe section 22 via solenoid valves (not shown).

The cleaning unit 4Y also includes a first detergent nozzle 28, a second detergent nozzle 30, a water-repellent coating nozzle 32, and a wax nozzle 34. The first detergent nozzle 28 and the second detergent nozzle 30 are arranged on the front 4A and rear 4B sides of each frame 8, respectively, and spray detergent containing shampoo or the like onto the vehicle X. The water-repellent coating nozzle 32 and the wax nozzle 34 are arranged on the rear 4B of the car wash machine main body 4. The water-repellent coating nozzle 32 sprays a water-repellent coating liquid onto the vehicle X. The wax nozzle 34 sprays wax onto the vehicle X. A tank storage unit 20 is arranged on the side of the car wash machine main body 4, and contains multiple liquid storage tanks (not shown) that store various liquids including detergent or wax. The liquid from each liquid storage tank is distributed to the corresponding nozzles via distribution piping similar to the distribution piping 22 described above.

The car wash machine main body 4 also includes a blower 36 that generates airflow as part of the cleaning section 4Y. A top air blowing nozzle 38 and a side air blowing nozzle 40 are connected to the blower 36. The top air blowing nozzle 38 is located at the top center of the car wash machine main body 4 and blows air toward the ceiling surface of the vehicle X. The side air blowing nozzles 40 are located on both sides of the car wash machine main body 4 and blow air toward the sides of the vehicle X. The car wash machine main body 4 blows air toward the vehicle X from the top air blowing nozzle 38 and side air blowing nozzles 40 to drain or dry the vehicle X after washing.

In the attached drawings, for simplicity of illustration, the various devices for washing vehicle X that are provided in the car wash machine main body 4 described above may be omitted. Furthermore, the various devices provided in the car wash machine main body 4 shown in the drawings are merely examples, and in addition to the devices described above, the car wash machine main body 4 may also be provided with devices for washing vehicle X and devices to assist in said washing, including conventionally known configurations, on the frame 8 or ceiling portion 10.

An operation panel 42 is located on the front of one of the frames 8 of the car wash machine main body 4. The operation panel 42 has operation buttons (not shown) for setting the car wash conditions. For example, a user who has exited vehicle X, or another technician, may operate the operation buttons to set the car wash conditions, etc.

<Control unit and remote panel>
The car wash machine 2 includes a control unit 44 that controls the car wash machine main body 4. The control unit 44 controls the movement of the car wash machine main body 4 along the rail R and the operation of each component of the cleaning unit 4Y, thereby controlling the washing of the vehicle X by the car wash machine main body 4. The control unit 44 may also control the first washing mechanism 60 and the second washing mechanism 70. The control unit 44 may be provided in the car wash machine main body 4 as shown in FIG. 2 . Alternatively, the control unit 44 may be located outside the car wash machine main body 4. The control unit 44 may transmit and receive information between the car wash machine main body 4, the first washing mechanism 60, the second washing mechanism 70, or a remote panel 6 (described later) via a communication device (not shown) or the like, and control each component of the car wash machine 2. The control unit 44 is configured, for example, by a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and each control is realized by executing a control program stored in memory on the processor.

The remote panel 6 is located, for example, on the front side of the car wash machine main body 4, and is arranged along the direction of movement of the car wash machine main body 4. As shown in FIG. 2, the remote panel 6 is arranged so that its front surface faces the side of the vehicle X before it is washed by the car wash machine main body 4, in other words, before it enters the interior of the car wash machine main body 4. For this reason, the back surface of the remote panel 6 is shown in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the remote panel 6 includes a housing 46 and a support column 48 that is erected on the ground G and supports the housing 46. The remote panel 6 may acquire at least some of the car wash conditions for the vehicle X to be washed by the car wash machine main body 4 through operation of a touch panel or buttons (not shown) provided on the housing 46. The control unit 44 may control the car wash machine main body 4 and wash the vehicle X based on at least some of the car wash conditions acquired by the remote panel 6.

<Sensor>
The car wash machine main body 4 further includes a sensor 52. The sensor 52 is located, for example, closer to the front surface 4A of the car wash machine main body 4 than the side brushes 16.

Sensor 52 is a sensor for acquiring information about the external shape of vehicle X, the object to be washed. More specifically, sensor 52 can detect the height of vehicle X crossing a predetermined point. For example, sensor 52 may be configured as a multi-axis optical axis sensor, with a pair of light-emitting and light-receiving units arranged on each of two frames 8 on the front side of the frame 8 of the car wash machine main body 4 and on the space 4S side. Here, in the multi-axis optical axis sensor, each optical axis sensor is arranged so that multiple optical axes are aligned vertically and each optical axis is on a substantially horizontal plane. Therefore, each optical axis sensor in the multi-axis optical axis sensor is configured to detect the presence or absence of a vehicle at different heights. In this case, sensor 52 may detect the height of vehicle X by, for example, checking the number of optical axis sensors detecting vehicle X while the car wash machine main body 4 moves relatively from the front to the rear of vehicle X.

As a result, the car wash machine main body 4 can estimate the height of vehicle X for each position in a planar view from changes in the number of optical axis sensors that detect vehicle X among the multi-axis optical axis sensors included in sensor 52. In other words, sensor 52 generates information for estimating at least a portion of the shape of vehicle X. As a result, sensor 52 may determine at least a portion of the outer shape of vehicle X for each position in a planar view. The control unit 44 may control each part of the cleaning unit to wash vehicle X based on the outer shape of vehicle X determined by sensor 52.

(Control of the car wash machine 2 by the control unit 44)
An exemplary car wash process for the vehicle X using the car wash machine 2 by the control unit 44 will be described below. Fig. 4 is a flow diagram showing an example of the car wash process by the control unit 44. As shown in Fig. 4, the car wash process using the car wash machine 2 includes a reception step S1, a washing step S2, a water draining step S3, a finish washing step S4, and a drying step S5.

<Reception process>
In this embodiment, the car wash machine 2 first performs a receiving step S1 of receiving a request for washing the vehicle X from a user of the vehicle X or the like. Specifically, the control unit 44 controls each part of the car wash machine main body 4 or the remote panel 6 to acquire the car wash conditions for the vehicle X from the user of the vehicle X or the like. For example, the control unit 44 controls the remote panel 6 or the operation panel 42 and accepts operations of the remote panel 6 or the operation panel 42 or the like from the user. In this way, the car wash machine 2 acquires information such as the car wash conditions for the vehicle X and payment of the car wash fee from the user.

The control unit 44 then controls the speaker or monitor of the car wash machine main body 4 to guide the user inside the vehicle X to move the vehicle X to a predetermined position and stop it. This allows the user to stop the vehicle X at a predetermined position, for example, in front of the car wash machine main body 4.

<Cleaning process>
Following the reception step S1, the car wash machine 2 performs a washing step S2 in which the vehicle X is washed using washing liquid. Specifically, the control unit 44 controls the first washing mechanism 60 and each part of the car wash machine main body 4 to wash the surface of the vehicle X passing through the space 4S. Immediately before the execution of the washing step S2, the car wash machine main body 4 is positioned on the front side of the vehicle X. In the washing step S2, the control unit 44 controls the drive unit 4X of the car wash machine main body 4 to perform washing using washing liquid while moving the car wash machine main body 4 forward. Moving the car wash machine main body 4 forward means that the front surface 4A of the car wash machine main body 4 moves forward facing the direction of travel. Moving the car wash machine main body 4 backward means that the rear surface 4B of the car wash machine main body 4 moves forward facing the direction of travel.

Specifically, in the washing step S2, the control unit 44 controls the first pump P1 to supply washing liquid to the car wash machine main body 4 via the first path 61, and sprays the washing liquid onto the vehicle X via the first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26. Furthermore, the control unit 44 controls each part of the cleaning unit 4Y, such as various brushes, to wash the vehicle X.

In the washing process S2, a washing process is performed based on the car wash conditions selected by the user via the remote panel 6, such as a brushing process in which the vehicle is brushed while spraying cleaning liquid, or a brushing shampoo process in which the vehicle is brushed while spraying detergent and cleaning liquid. Depending on the car wash conditions, the washing process may be performed during a first outbound journey in which the car wash machine 2 moves forward and the vehicle X passes through the car wash machine 2, a first return journey in which the car wash machine 2 moves backward and the vehicle X passes through the car wash machine 2, and a second outbound journey in which the car wash machine 2 moves forward again and the vehicle X passes through the car wash machine 2. Alternatively, the washing process may be performed during both the first outbound journey and the first return journey.

The control unit 44 may appropriately vary the movement speed of the car wash machine main body 4 during the washing process S2 depending on the car wash conditions, and may also temporarily suspend the movement of the car wash machine main body 4 as necessary.

The control unit 44 also moves the car wash machine main body 4 forward and causes the sensor 52 to detect the vehicle X, thereby acquiring information about the external shape of the vehicle X.

During the latter half of the cleaning process S2, the control unit 44 may switch from supplying cleaning liquid via the first path 61 to supplying pure water via the second path 71.

<Draining process>
After the washing step S2, the car wash machine 2 executes a draining step S3 in which the cleaning liquid is drained. Specifically, the control unit 44 executes the draining step S3 by controlling each component of the car wash machine main body 4. In the draining step S3, the control unit 44 controls the drive unit 4X to move the car wash machine main body 4 backward in the direction opposite to the forward direction, while controlling the blower 36 to blow air toward the vehicle X and drain the cleaning liquid from the surface of the vehicle X. If the washing step S2 has been performed up to any of the backward paths, such as the first backward path and the second backward path, in the draining step S3, the control unit 44 may move the car wash machine main body 4 forward in the forward direction (forward), while controlling the blower 36 to drain the cleaning liquid. The draining step S3 may also be executed while the car wash machine main body 4 is traveling between the backward path and the forward path, or between the forward path and the backward path.

In the water-draining step S3, the control unit 44 may adjust the distance between the blower 36 and the vehicle X based on information regarding the external shape of the vehicle X from the sensor 52. The control unit 44 can estimate the height of the vehicle X for each position in a planar view from changes in the number of optical axis sensors that detect the vehicle X among the multi-axis optical axis sensors included in the sensor 52. The control unit 44 can adjust the distance between the blower 36 and the vehicle X based on the height of the vehicle X for each position in a planar view. For example, the control unit 44 may control the position of the blower 36 so that it is close to the vehicle X while maintaining a substantially constant distance. This allows the strength of the air blown from the blower 36 toward the vehicle X to be maintained, and water can be more reliably drained. By improving the water-draining effect of the cleaning liquid, the generation of ion deposits can be significantly reduced.

Alternatively, if the blower 36 is fixed to the ceiling 10, the control unit 44 may adjust the air volume of the blower 36 in the water-draining step S3 according to the distance between the blower 36 and the vehicle X, based on information from the sensor 52 regarding the external shape of the vehicle X. For example, the control unit 44 may increase the air volume of the blower 36 the greater the distance between the vehicle X and the blower 36, and decrease the air volume of the blower 36 the shorter the distance. This allows the strength of the air blown from the blower 36 toward the vehicle X to be maintained even when the blower 36 is fixed to the car wash machine main body 4, thereby enabling more reliable water-draining. By improving the water-draining effect of the cleaning liquid, the generation of ion deposits can be significantly reduced.

Furthermore, in the water-draining step S3, the control unit 44 may control the blower 36 to temporarily stop moving or move repeatedly at a predetermined designated portion of the vehicle X based on information about the external shape of the vehicle X from the sensor 52. The predetermined designated portion of the vehicle X may be, for example, a portion where the air blown by the blower 36 has difficulty reaching, such as a portion where the side mirrors are attached, a portion where the wipers are attached, the boundary between the roof and rear window, or the step between the tailgate and bumper.

If vehicle X is a large vehicle, the predefined designated areas of vehicle X may be areas where ion deposits are likely to be noticeable. For example, if vehicle X is a bus, the designated areas may be the door mirrors and window glass. If vehicle X is a truck, the designated areas may be the cabin area including the door mirrors.

Sensor 52 can determine the position of the designated area in a plan view from changes in the number of optical axis sensors that detect vehicle X among the multi-axis optical axis sensors included in sensor 52. For example, control unit 44 may control drive unit 4X to slow the movement speed of car wash machine main body 4 or move car wash machine main body 4 repeatedly while blower 36 drains water from the designated area. Alternatively, movement of car wash machine main body 4 may be temporarily stopped as needed. By controlling draining water intensively from the designated area, draining can be more reliably performed. By improving the draining effect of the cleaning solution, the generation of ion deposits can be significantly reduced.

During the draining process S3, the control unit 44 may replace the water in the path between the second tank 72 and the drainage path 23 with pure water by supplying pure water from the second tank 72 while discharging the cleaning liquid through the drainage path 23.

<Finishing cleaning process>
After the water-draining step S3, the car wash machine 2 executes a finish washing step S4 in which pure water is used to finish washing the vehicle. Specifically, the control unit 44 controls the second washing mechanism 70 and each part of the car wash machine main body 4 to execute the finish washing step S4. In the finish washing step S4, the control unit 44 controls the drive unit 4X of the car wash machine main body 4 to perform finish washing by spraying pure water onto the vehicle X while moving the car wash machine main body 4 forward. Specifically, the control unit 44 controls the second pump P2 to supply pure water to the car wash machine main body 4 via the second path 71 and spray the pure water onto the vehicle X via the first nozzle 24 and the second nozzle 26.

<Drying process>
After the finish washing step S4, the car wash machine 2 executes a drying step S5. Specifically, the drying step is executed by the control unit 44 controlling each part of the car wash machine main body 4. In the drying step S5, the control unit 44 may operate the blower 36 while moving the car wash machine main body 4 backward to blow air onto the vehicle X and dry the vehicle X.

〔summary〕
(1) A car wash according to aspect 1 of the present disclosure comprises a car wash main body that washes a vehicle, a first washing mechanism that sprays a washing liquid, a second washing mechanism that sprays pure water having a lower electrical conductivity than the washing liquid, and a control unit that controls each part of the car wash main body, the first washing mechanism, and the second washing mechanism, wherein the car wash main body comprises a blower that generates an airflow, and the control unit performs a car wash process that includes a washing step that controls the first washing mechanism to wash the vehicle, a water draining step that controls the blower to drain the washing liquid, and a finishing washing step that controls the second washing mechanism to finish washing the vehicle.

By performing a water-draining process before the finish washing process using pure water, the amount of cleaning solution used in the washing process remaining on the vehicle body surface is significantly reduced. Because the remaining cleaning solution, which is the main cause of ion deposits, is reduced in the water-draining process, even when the same amount of pure water is used in the finish washing process, the amount of ion deposits can be significantly reduced compared to conventional pure water finishing car washes. In other words, the quality of the pure water finish can be improved. Furthermore, because the amount of cleaning solution remaining on the vehicle body surface is reduced in the water-draining process, the amount of pure water used in the finish washing process can also be reduced.

(2) A car wash machine according to aspect 2 of the present disclosure is the same as in aspect 1 above, but further includes a sensor that moves relative to the vehicle in the fore-and-aft direction and acquires information about the vehicle's external shape, and the control unit controls the blower to temporarily stop moving or move repeatedly at a predetermined designated part of the vehicle based on the information from the sensor during the water-draining process.

This configuration improves the effectiveness of draining water from designated areas, such as areas that are difficult for the blower to reach. This also improves the quality of pure water cleaning.

(3) A car wash machine according to aspect 3 of the present disclosure is the same as in aspect 1 or 2 above, further comprising a sensor that moves relative to the vehicle in the fore-and-aft direction and acquires information about the vehicle's external shape, and the control unit adjusts the air volume of the blower in the water-draining process based on the information from the sensor and in accordance with the distance between the blower and the vehicle.

This configuration improves the draining effect during the draining process, thereby improving the quality of the pure water cleaning.

(4) In a car wash machine according to aspect 4 of the present disclosure, in any one of aspects 1 to 3 above, the nozzle that sprays the cleaning liquid in the first cleaning mechanism and the nozzle that sprays the pure water in the second cleaning mechanism are the same.

Using a common nozzle reduces the manufacturing costs of the car wash machine and also reduces maintenance efforts.

(5) A car wash machine according to aspect 5 of the present disclosure is the same as any one of aspects 1 to 4 above, wherein the blower includes a top air-blowing nozzle that blows air toward the ceiling surface of the vehicle and a side air-blowing nozzle that blows air toward the side surface of the vehicle.

During the water-draining process, the top and side air-blowing nozzles allow the air from the blower to be efficiently blown across the entire vehicle surface, improving the water-draining effect. This also improves the quality of the pure water cleaning.

(6) A car wash machine according to aspect 6 of the present disclosure is any one of aspects 1 to 5 above, further comprising a sensor that moves relative to the vehicle in the fore-and-aft direction and acquires information about the vehicle's external shape, and the control unit adjusts the distance between the blower and the vehicle based on the information from the sensor during the water-draining process.

This configuration improves the draining effect during the draining process, thereby improving the quality of the pure water cleaning.

(7) A car wash machine according to aspect 7 of the present disclosure is any one of aspects 1 to 6 above, wherein the second washing mechanism is equipped with a pure water generator that reduces the electrical conductivity of the liquid, and the pure water is water having a conductivity of 0 μS/cm or more and 6 μS/cm or less that is generated by the pure water generator.

By performing a final cleaning using pure water with an electrical conductivity of 0 μS/cm or more and 6 μS/cm or less, ion deposits can be further reduced, further improving the quality of the pure water cleaning.

[Additional Notes]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

2... Car wash machine 4... Car wash machine main body 4X... Drive unit 4Y... Cleaning unit 24... First nozzle 26... Second nozzle 36... Blower 44... Control unit 60... First cleaning mechanism 61... First path 62... First tank 70... Second cleaning mechanism 71... Second path 72... Second tank 73... Pure water generating device

Claims (4)

A car wash machine body for washing a vehicle;
a first cleaning mechanism that sprays a cleaning liquid;
a second cleaning mechanism that sprays pure water having a lower electrical conductivity than the cleaning liquid;
a control unit that controls each of the car wash machine main body, the first washing mechanism, and the second washing mechanism,
The car wash machine body is provided with a blower that generates an airflow,
the control unit executes a car wash process including a washing step of controlling the first washing mechanism to wash the vehicle, a water draining step of controlling the blower to drain the washing liquid, and a finish washing step of controlling the second washing mechanism to finish washing the vehicle ,
a sensor that moves relatively in the front-rear direction of the vehicle and acquires information about the outer shape of the vehicle;
The control unit adjusts the air volume of the blower in accordance with the distance between the blower and the vehicle based on the information from the sensor during the water draining process. 2. The car wash machine according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the blower to temporarily stop moving or to repeatedly move at a predetermined designated portion of the vehicle based on the information from the sensor during the water draining process. The car wash machine according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit adjusts a distance between the blower and the vehicle based on the information from the sensor during the water draining process. A car wash machine body for washing a vehicle;
a first cleaning mechanism that sprays a cleaning liquid;
a second cleaning mechanism that sprays pure water having a lower electrical conductivity than the cleaning liquid;
a control unit that controls each of the car wash machine main body, the first washing mechanism, and the second washing mechanism,
The car wash machine body is provided with a blower that generates an airflow,
the control unit executes a car wash process including a washing step of controlling the first washing mechanism to wash the vehicle, a draining step of controlling the blower to drain the washing liquid, and a finish washing step of controlling the second washing mechanism to finish washing the vehicle after the draining step,
a nozzle for spraying the cleaning liquid in the first cleaning mechanism and a nozzle for spraying the pure water in the second cleaning mechanism are common,
The control unit switches the supply of the cleaning liquid to the car wash machine body to the supply of pure water during the water draining process .