Vacuum cleaning system

Claim 1

A VACUUM CLEANING SYSTEM COMPRISING A BASE, FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD INDIVIDUAL TANKS SUPPORTED SIDE BY SIDE BY THE BASE, A FIRST INLET OPENING INTO THE FIRST TANK ADJACENT THE UPPER END THEREOF FOR ADMITTING AIR CARRYING DIRT AND LIQUID, THE LOWER PORTION OF THE FIRST TANK BELOW THE INLET THEREOF PROVIDING A HEAVY PARTICLE AND LIQUID RECEPTACLE FOR RECEIVING HEAVY DIRT PARTICLES AND AT LEAST MOST OF THE LIQUID CARRIED BY THE AIR ENTERING THE FIRST TANK, A FIRST OUTLET FROM THE FIRST TANK ADJACENT THE UPPER END THEREOF, A SECOND INLET OPENING TANGENTIALLY INTO THE SIDE OF THE SECOND TANK, PASSAGE MEANS CONNECTING THE FIRST OUTLET TO THE SECOND INLET, A FLOAT VALVE IN THE PATH OF THE FIRST OUTLET FOR BLOCKING THE OUTLET WHEN THE LOWER PORTION OF THE TANK FILLS WITH LIQUID, AN INVERTED FRUSTO-CONICAL MEMBER SUPPORTED ON A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL AXIS WITHIN THE SECOND TANK WITH A LARGE OPENING AT THE UPPER END AND A SMALLER OPENING AT THE LOWER END OF THE INVERTED FRUSTO-CONICAL MEMBER, THE LARGE OPENING BEING POSITIONED BELOW THE INLET OPENING, THE TANK INCLUDING A DIRT COLLECTOR BELOW THE INVERTED FRUSTOCONICAL MEMBER, MEANS DEFINING A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL ANNULAR CHANNEL WITHIN THE SECOND TANK, THE ANNULAR CHANNEL HAVING AN OPEN LOWER END ABOVE THE INVERTED FRUSTO-CONICAL MEMBER AND HAVING A CENTRAL PASSAGE THROUGH IT COMMUNICATING WITH THE OPEN LOWER END, THE SECOND INLET OPENING INTO THE SIDE OF THE ANNULAR CHANNEL WHEREBY THE ANNULAR CHANNEL SWIRLS THE AIR ABOVE THE INVERTED FRUSTO-CONICAL MEMBER AS DIRT AND FOREIGN MATTER FALL FROM THE SWIRLING AIR, A SECOND OUTLET FROM THE SECOND TANK ADJACENT THE UPPER END THEREOF AND COMMUNICATING WITH THE CENTRAL PASSAGE THROUGH THE ANNULAR CHANNEL, A THIRD INLET TO THE THIRD TANK, PASSAGE MEANS CONNECTING THE SECOND OUTLET TO THE THIRD INLET, A MICRON SEPARATOR AND VACUUM PUMP MEANS IN THE THIRD TANK, PASSAGE MEANS IN THE THIRD TANK TO CAUSE AIR ENTERING THE THIRD INLET TO FLOW THROUGH THE MICRON SEPARATOR FOR SEPARATION OF THE REMAINING FINE DIRT PARTICLES FROM THE AIR AND THENCE THROUGH THE VACUUM PUMP MEANS, THE VACUUM PUMP MEANS COMPRISING TWO SEPARATE VACUUM PUMPS, FIRST PASSAGE MEANS LEADING FROM THE MICRON SEPARATOR TO THE INLET TO ONE OF THE VACUUM PUMPS, CONSTANTLY OPEN SECOND PASSAGE MEANS LEADING FROM THE OUTLET OF THE SAID ONE VACUUM PUMP TO THE INLET TO THE OTHER VACUUM PUMP, THIRD PASSAGE MEANS LEADING FROM THE MICRON SEPARATOR TO THE INLET OF THE SAID OTHER VACUUM PUMP AND BYPASSING THE SAID ONE VACUUM PUMP, A PLATE SLIDABLE ACROSS THE THIRD PASSAGE MEANS TO SELECTIVELY ALTERNATELY BLOCK AND UNBLOCK THE THIRD PASSAGE MEANS WHILE THE SECOND PASSAGE MEANS REMAINS OPEN, AND A MANUALLY ENGAGEABLE KNOB ACCESSIBLE EXTERNALLY OF THE THIRD TANK FOR SLIDING THE PLATE.