WO2008009024A2

WO2008009024A2 - A portable vacuum system with self-cleaning filter system

Info

Publication number: WO2008009024A2
Application number: PCT/US2007/073619
Authority: WO
Inventors: William D. Holm; James B. Whiting
Original assignee: Holm, Llc
Priority date: 2006-07-14
Filing date: 2007-07-16
Publication date: 2008-01-17
Also published as: WO2008009024A3

Abstract

The present invention is designed to clean the filters during operations without interrupting or having to stop normal use of the vacuum cleaning systems (10) Preferably, the portable vacuum cleaning system (10) comprises a portable frame (11) having a longitudinal axis, a collection tank ( 13) mounted to the portable frame (1 1 ) for collecting and transporting materials which are vacuumed up, and a self-cleaning filter system (30) mounted to the portable frame ( 1 1 ) The self-cleaning filter systems (30) have at least one filter house (3 1 ), a blower means (25), and a control means (50) for controlling an opening/closing port (46) and a reverse air flow port (47) The control means (50) is designed to cause the reverse airflow port (47) to be open when the outlet port (46) is closed during normal operation for a time interval of not more than a second at least three times per hour

Description

A PORTABLE VACUUM SYSTEM WITH SELF-CLEANING FILTER SYSTEM

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/831,102 filed July 14, 2006, the contents of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference thereto.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to an improved portable vacuum cleaning system having a self-cleaning filter system. The present invention is designed to effectively and efficiently clean the filters during normal operations without having to stop the vacuum cleaning system or interrupt the use thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It has been common in the past to use truck-mounted or trailer-mounted vacuum cleaning systems to clean up a wide variety of debris such as from sewers, sludge basins and waste collection areas of mills and other industrial sites. Typically, such vacuum cleaning systems have one or more tanks or collection chambers on the vehicle into which the material is deposited. A high velocity blower generates a stream of air to flow through a flexible hose that induces the waste material or debris to flow from the waste site through the flexible hose to a large collection chamber where the heavier debris is collected. The debris remaining in the air stream moves with the air stream through one or more collection chambers that collect the lighter particles of debris. See U.S. Patent Nos. 4,938,984 and 5,996,171.

Ideally, the air exhausted from the blower to the atmosphere is so clean that no contaminants are discharged to the atmosphere. Thus, a filter bag house is usually included for filtering out the finer material from the airstream. These filter bags become clogged quickly and must be cleaned frequently, which is time consuming, inefficient, and causes extreme wear on the filter bags. In addition, as the bags become clogged the efficiency of the vacuum cleaning system is greatly reduced. Prior art solutions to this problem generally provide an air purge or jetting system for periodically delivering a charge of compressed air to the filter bags in a direction opposite to the normal flow of air through the filter bags caused by the vacuum system. See U.S. Patent No. 5,030,259. The sudden burst of compressed air causes the bags to pop or flex rapidly and can shorten the life of the bags, which are expensive. In addition, it has been found that air purge or jetting systems are not effective or efficient, partially because the system's sudden purge air flow is neutralized or frustrated by the normal flow of air that quickly sucks the debris back onto the filters. Therefore, debris clogging the filters is never dislodged or is immediately lodged again on the filter by the normal air flow.

Accordingly, it has been determined that a need exists for a portable vacuum cleaning system which is simple to construct and has an improved self-cleaning mechanism that is effective, while not interrupting normal use of the vacuum system. Preferably the improved system would have no noticeable loss of negative air pressure or require terminating the operation of the blower and would extend the life of the filter bags.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to an improved portable vacuum cleaning system having a self-cleaning filter system. The present invention is designed to clean the filters during operations without interrupting or having to stop normal use of the vacuum cleaning system.

In a preferred embodiment the improved portable vacuum cleaning system comprises a portable frame having a longitudinal axis; a collection tank mounted to the portable frame for collecting and transporting materials which are vacuumed up; and a self-cleaning filter system mounted to the portable frame. Preferably, the self-cleaning filter system comprises a filter house, a blower means, and a control means for controlling the opening/closing means associated with a closeable outlet port and a closeable reverse airflow port, wherein the blower means is associated with the filter house and the filter system is associated with the collection tank in such a way that the blower means urges unclean air to pass through the collection tank prior to passing through the inlet chamber of the filter house during normal operation.

In a preferred embodiment, the filter house comprises a housing chamber and a filter frame, wherein the filter frame is in the housing chamber and divides the housing chamber into two chambers, an inlet chamber and an outlet chamber. The frame typically has filter holes and a filter mounting means for connecting a plurality of filters to the frame to ensure that air passing from the inlet chamber to the outlet chamber passes through the filters. The inlet chamber also advantageously has an inlet port associated therewith and the outlet chamber is divided into at least two mini-outlet chambers by a chamber divider. Each mini- outlet chamber typically encloses at least one filter and has a closeable outlet port and a closeable reverse airflow port associated therewith. The outlet port and reverse airflow port each preferably have an opening/closing means and a control means to control the timing of the opening and closing of the outlet and reverse airflow ports.

It is also preferable that the blower means is associated with the filter house in such a way that when the outlet port is open and the reverse airflow port is closed in a mini-outlet chamber the blower means urges air to pass through the inlet port into the inlet chamber and through the filters into the mini-outlet chamber. For the mini-outlet chambers wherein the reverse airflow port is open and the outlet port is closed, the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the mini-outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the mini-outlet chambers with the outlet port open, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system.

In a preferred embodiment, the control means for controlling the opening/closing means is designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open when the outlet port is closed for a time interval of not more than a second, e.g., 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, 0.5, or 0.4 seconds. Preferably the reverse airflow port is opened during normal operations several times (e.g., 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or more) per hour in order to continuously clean the filters to maintain maximum vacuuming efficiency during operation of the vacuum cleaning system and while also limiting the interruption to normal operations. In one embodiment, the reverse airflow port is opened in a particular mini-outlet chamber during normal operations between 2 and 20 times per hour for less than a second at a time.

In a different preferred embodiment, the self-cleaning filter system comprises at least two filter houses. In this embodiment each filter house comprises a housing chamber and a filter frame wherein the filter frame is within the housing chamber and divides the housing into two chambers, an inlet chamber and an outlet chamber. The filter frame typically has filter holes and a filter mounting means for connecting a plurality of filters to the frame to ensure that air passing between the inlet chamber and the outlet chamber passes through the filters. The outlet chamber also has both an outlet port and a reverse airflow port associated therewith. The outlet port and the reverse airflow port also preferably each have an opening/closing means associated thereto. The at least two filter houses are preferably connected by a connection tube that connects the inlet chambers of the filter houses, wherein at least one of the filter houses has an inlet port associated with the inlet chamber. Typically, the filter house has an openable lid.

The filter system in this embodiment also comprises a blower means and a control means for controlling the opening/closing means associated with the closeable outlet port and closeable reverse airflow port for each filter house. In this embodiment, the blower means is preferably associated with each filter house in such a way that the blower means urges air to pass through the inlet port into the inlet chamber, through the filters into the outlet chamber when the outlet port is open and the reverse airflow port is closed, and when the reverse airflow port is open and the outlet port is closed the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber. The air is then urged through the connection tube into the inlet chamber of the filter house with the outlet port open and the reverse airflow port closed.

The control means in this embodiment is designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open in at least one filter house when the outlet port is closed for a time interval of not more than a second. This is preferably during normal operation of the vacuum cleaning system. In this way the air is able to flow in a reverse direction through the filter house that has the reverse airflow port open during operation of the filter system. The time in which the reverse airflow occurs is brief as to not interrupt normal operations, but surprisingly effective if done several times per hour to prevent interruption to normal operations and/or to provide greater cleaning power.

It should be noted that in those embodiments having more than one filter house, the filter outlet chamber can optionally be divided into mini-outlet chambers as disclosed above. Thus, the self-cleaning system may comprise at least two, three, four or more filter houses that can be optionally divided into mini-outlet chambers by an outlet chamber divider as discussed above. Having multiple smaller mini-outlet chambers provides a means of cleaning the filters without noticeably interrupting normal operation. Thus, in one preferred embodiment, the control means, e.g., the truck computer, is programmed so that the smaller mini-outlet chambers individually self-clean several times per hour during normal operations.

Generally, the filter is a filter bag, but filter cartridges can be used in the alternative. Such cartridge filters are typically elongated. When filter bags are used it is preferable that the filter frame has a filter bag cage associated therewith to prevent the filter bags from collapsing during operation.

The control means used with the invention is preferably designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open while the outlet port is closed at least three, five, or seven times per hour or more preferably more than eight times per hour. In one featured embodiment, the control means is designed to cause only one reverse airflow port of the filter system to be open at a time and to open each reverse airflow port of the filter system at least three to five times per hour. In an optional embodiment, the inlet port is also closeable and is associated with an opening/closing means. Closing or partially closing the closeable inlet port allows the filter system to reach maximum cleaning and drying potential, but it should be noted that this embodiment of the invention can interrupt normal use of the vacuum system during the cleaning mode cycle.

In a typical embodiment, the frame is a vehicle frame having wheels to facilitate usability of the vacuum system in different locations.

It is recommended that the HEPA filter be used to further filter the exhaust air when regulations are in place or it is important to minimize pollution in order to collect the microscopic particles that other filters cannot stop. HEPA filters are also recommended to extend the life of the blower means.

In certain embodiments the portable vacuum cleaning system can further comprise a cyclone separator coupled to the vehicle frame. Advantageously, the collection tank can be tiltable with an opening rear door for easy emptying of the collection tank.

The present invention also is directed to a method of cleaning the filters of the portable vacuum cleaning system during regular operation of the vacuum cleaning system. The method preferably comprises the steps of: turning on the blower means associated with the filter system; opening the reverse airflow port and closing the outlet port of one mini-outlet chamber for a time interval of not more than a second so that the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the mini-outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the mini-outlet chambers with the outlet port open without interrupting normal operations, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system.

In those embodiments where more than one filter house is present the method may alternatively include the steps of closing the reverse airflow port and opening the outlet port of at least one filter house; and opening the reverse airflow port and closing the outlet port of one filter house so that the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the filter house chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the filter house chamber with the outlet port open, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system.

Preferably, the reverse airflow port is opened for less than a second at least 3 to 20 times an hour. Other objects, advantages and features of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following specification in conjunction with the accompanying drawing figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plain view of an improved self-cleaning portable vacuum cleaning system.

FIG. 2 is a perspective illustration of a filter house having two mini-outlet chambers.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of a filter house having five mini-outlet chambers.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a filter house wherein the airflow is reversed in one of the mini-outlet chambers by closing the closeable outlet port and opening the reverse airflow port.

FIGS. 5 A and 5B are side elevations of a filter and filter cage.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-section of the prototype box mounted on the lid of bag house of the portable vacuum system.

FIG. 7 is a top view of the inside of the prototype box house.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a system comprising two filter houses.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

All patents and literature references cited in this specification are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. As used in the specification and in the claims, "a" can mean one or more, depending upon the context in which it is used.

Referring now in more detail to the drawings, in which like numerals indicate like features, FIG. 1 depicts one embodiment of a truck mounted with the improved portable vacuum cleaning system 10. Preferably the portable vacuum cleaning system 10 comprises: a portable frame 11; at least one collection tank 13 mounted to the portable frame 11 for collecting and transporting materials which are vacuumed up; a self-cleaning filter system 30 mounted to the portable frame 11; and a blower means 25. In one preferred embodiment the portable frame 11 is a vehicle 14, e.g., a ten-wheel double rear axle truck, which is mounted with a portable vacuum cleaning system 10 according to the present invention. In another embodiment, the portable vacuum cleaning system 10 is mounted on a portable towable trailer (not shown).

The collection tanks 13 can be any shape, but are typically rectangular or cylindrical. The collection tanks 13 are designed to separate the particulate matter from the vacuumed air before entering the filter house to be further purified and released to the environment. The system 10 may comprise 1, 2, 3 or more collections tanks 13 that are designed to further remove the particulate matter. The first collection tank 13 is typically the largest of the collection tanks 13, wherein most of the heavier particulate matter is generally deposited in the first collection tank 13. The first tank 13 usually has a flexible hose 15 attached thereto for use to vacuum up the waste material.

The blower means 25 can be any device suitable for moving large amounts of air. Preferably, the blower means is a high velocity blower that can generate a strong stream of air flow that induces the waste material or debris to flow from the waste site through the flexible hose 15 to a large collection chamber where the heavier debris is collected. In a preferred embodiment, a positive displacement blower is used. The blower 25 can be driven by the vehicle's engine or an auxiliary engine, for example. The blower 25 preferably has an exhaust port 26 in communication with a large silencer 27 to reduce noise pollution.

The self-cleaning filter system 30, as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 comprises a filter house 31, a filter frame 32, which divides the filter house 31 into two chambers, an inlet chamber 35 and an outlet chamber 40. The inlet chamber has an inlet port 36 associated therewith. The filter frame 32 also has filter frame holes 33 and filter mounting means 34 to mount a plurality of filters 37 to the filter frame 32 so that air passing from the inlet chamber 35 passes through the filters 37 to get to the outlet chamber 40. The filter mounting means 34 can be any means, such as a clamp or adhesive in which the filters 37 are mounted to the filter frame 32. Preferably a filter cage 38 is also associated with the filter frame 32 to keep the filters 37 from collapsing and preventing effective filtration. See Figs. 5A and 5B. Filters 37 as used herein can be any filter, for example a filter bag 37 or cartridge system (not shown). Preferred filter bags 37 are 70-inches, but can be any size desired. The longer filter bags 37 provide greater air-to-cloth ratios. In certain embodiments, a HEPA filter is also used to provide greater pollution control.

The filter house 31 also comprises an outlet chamber divider 48 that divides the outlet chamber 40 into two or more mini-outlet chambers 41 and 42. Preferably, the outlet chamber 40 is divided into at least 3, 4, or 5 mini-outlet chambers, respectively 43, 44, and 45 in FIG. 3. Having multiple smaller mini-outlet chambers provides a means of cleaning the filters without noticeably interrupting normal operation and provides greater cleaning power in less time. In certain embodiments not shown in the Figures, the outlet chamber 40 can be divided into 6, 7, 8, or more mini-outlet chambers. In an alternative embodiment, the outlet chamber 40 is associated with at least one other filter house 61, which will be explained in greater detail below. The mini-outlet chambers 41 and 42 are each associated with a closeable outlet port 46 and a closeable reverse airflow port 47 and opening/closing means 49 associated with the closeable ports 46 and 47 and a control means 50, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The closeable ports can be any structure that can be opened or closed, for example, a port with a butterfly damper, louvered damper, sliding gate, a single flap that can be pivoted around a shaft, a ball valve, etc. The opening/closing means 49 can be any mechanical or electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic that can actuate the closeable port. For example, an air cylinder or hydraulic cylinder can be associated with the closeable port having a ball valve to open or close the closeable port.

The control means 50 is associated with the opening/closing means 49 to control the scheduling and duration of actuation of the opening/closing means 49. Preferably, the control means 50 is a remote control device for automatic actuation, e.g., the truck computer system or electronic signal. In one embodiment, the control means 50 is designed to cause the reverse airflow port 47 to be open when the outlet port 46 is closed for a time interval of not more than a second. Preferably the reverse airflow port is opened in only one mini-outlet chamber at a time to minimize operational interference. Preferred time intervals for opening the reverse airflow port 47 and closing the outlet port 46 are: 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, 0.5, and 0.4 seconds in one mini-outlet chamber 41 and 42 at a time. This allows the air to reverse direction through the filter 37 to clean the filter 37 without having to stop operations or drastically reduce vacuum strength. Applicants surprisingly discovered that even though the reverse airflow was brief it provided sufficient air cleaning power to effectively clean the filters 37 without interrupting operations. In a preferred embodiment, the controls means 50 is designed to open each reverse airflow port 47 two or more times an hour, more preferably at least 3 to 20 times an hour (e.g., 3, 5, 7, 9, or more times an hour) to continuously clean the filters 37 to maintain maximum vacuuming efficiency during operation of the vacuum cleaning system 10, while also limiting the interruption to normal operations. The filter bags 37 are typically arranged within the bag house 31 in a series of spaced rows forming a grid or circular rings.

As explained above and shown in FIG. 8, the self-cleaning filter system 30 may also comprise at least two filter houses 60 and 61. In this embodiment each filter house comprises a housing chamber 62 and a filter frame 32 wherein the filter frame 32 is within the housing chamber 62 and divides the housing into two chambers, an inlet chamber 35 and an outlet chamber 40. The filter frame 32 typically has filter holes 33 and a filter mounting means 34 for connecting a plurality of filters 37 to the frame 32 to ensure that air passing between the inlet chamber 35 and the outlet chamber 40 passes through the filters 37. The outlet chamber 40 also has both an outlet port 46 and a reverse airflow port 47 associated therewith. The outlet port 46 and the reverse airflow port 47 also preferably each have an opening/closing means 49 associated thereto. The at least two filter houses 60 and 61 are preferably connected by a connection tube 64 that connects the inlet chambers 35 of the filter houses 60 and 61, wherein at least one of the filter house 60 has an inlet port 36 associated with the inlet chamber 35. Advantageously, the filter house 60 may optionally have an openable lid 63. The filter bag house 60 preferably has a lid 63, which is optionally hinged at one end for access to the bag house.

In an optional embodiment not shown, the at least two filter houses 60 and 61 have separate inlet ports 36, that are separately connected to individual blower means 25 for greater versatility and control. In this embodiment, each filter house 60 and 61 would advantageously have multiple mini-outlet chambers 41 and 42 as described above.

In another optional embodiment of the invention, the inlet port 36 of the filter house 31 may be closeable and associated with an opening/closing means 49. In this embodiment, the reverse cleaning would be maximized.

OPERATION

As shown in FIG. 4, the airflow 70 and debris remaining in the air stream move into the filter bag house 31. During normal use the airflow 70 moves through the inlet port 36 into the inlet chamber 35 of the filter bag house 31. The airflow 70 then passes through the filter bags 37 into the outlet chamber 40 and through the exhaust outlet port 46.

The filter bags 37 are periodically cleaned on an ongoing basis during operation as follows: the exhaust outlet port 46 is closed and the reverse airflow port 47 is open in one or more mini-outlet chambers sections of the filter bag house 31 for not more than a second, preferably 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4 seconds. In FIG. 4, the outlet port 46 is closed and the reverse airflow port 47 is open in the first mini-outlet chamber 41. This effectively reverses the airflow 70 in the first mini-outlet chamber 41 so that the airflow 70 moves through the open reverse airflow port 47 into the outlet chamber 40 continuing in the reverse direction through the filter bags 37 and into the inlet chamber 35. Once in the inlet chamber 35 the air then moves through the filter bags 37 that are operating in normal mode (not being cleaned) and into the mini-outlet chamber 42 and out the exhaust outlet port 46, which is open. The present invention is more particularly described in the following examples that are intended as illustrative only as numerous modifications and variations therein will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The present invention will now be illustrated by the following non-limiting examples.

EXAMPLE: Prototype Portable Vacuum Cleaning System

A prototype of the invention 10 was built by modifying a currently available vacuum truck having a bag house 31. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the filter bag house 31 had an interior bag house chamber 62 which was divided into two chambers by a filter frame 32, an inlet chamber 35 and an outlet chamber 40. The filter frame 31 had filter frame holes 33 and a plurality of filters 37 mounted to the filter frame 32 to ensure that air passing from the inlet chamber 35 to the outlet chamber 40 passes through the filters 37. The bag house 31 further had an inlet port 35 allowing air to pass into the inlet chamber 35 and an outlet port 46 allowing the filtered air to pass through the outlet chamber 40 and out of the bag house 31. The bag house 31 was modified by placing a chamber divider 48 in the outlet chamber 40 of the bag house 31 thereby dividing the bag house outlet chamber 40 into a first and second mini-outlet chambers 41 and 42 respectively, roughly of equal size. An air hole 75 was made in the bag house lid 63 over the first mini-outlet chamber 41 and an air hole 76 was made in the bag house lid 63 over the second mini-outlet chamber 42.

A prototype box 80 having an air connection hole 77, a closeable reverse airflow port 47, a closeable outlet port 46, an outlet port shunt 90 and an opening/closing means 49, e.g., an air cylinder, to close either the reverse airflow port 47 or the outlet port 46. The prototype box 80 was placed on the bag house lid 63 so that the air connection hole 77 and the bag house air hole 76 over the second mini-outlet chamber 42 were aligned and the outlet port shunt 90 was aligned over the bag house air hole 75 of the first outlet chamber 41 so that when the closeable outlet port 46 is open, air 70 passes from the second outlet chamber 42 through the prototype box 80 and into the first outlet chamber 41 and out the outlet port 46.

As shown in FIG. 7, the prototype box 80 further comprises a control means 50 for controlling the opening/closing means 49 associated with the closeable reverse airflow port 47 and the closeable outlet port 46. The control means 50 e.g., a computer program, controls the actuation of the air cylinder 49 so as to control when the reverse airflow port 47 and outlet port 46 are open or closed. The control means 50 is designed to cause the reverse airflow port 80 to be open when the outlet port 46 is closed during operation for a time interval of less than a second to make sure that the cleaning process did not interrupt operations or cause loss of power. The control means 50 further was designed to cause the reverse airflow port 47 to be open at least three times per hour during operation. In one particular embodiment, the control means 50 is designed to cause the reverse airflow port 47 to be open at least 3-20, 5-20, or 10-20 times per hour for each mini-outlet chamber 41-45.

During regular operation of the prototype vacuum cleaning system 10 a blower means 25 associated with the filter system 30 is turned on and the reverse airflow port 47 is closed and the outlet port 46 is opened. During operation the reverse airflow port 47 is opened and the closeable outlet port 46 is closed for less than a second so that the blower 25 means urges the air 70 through the reverse airflow port 47 into the second mini-outlet chamber 42 through the filters 37 and into the inlet chamber 35, the air 70 is then urged through the filters 37 into the first mini-outlet chamber 41 and out the outlet port 46, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system 30. This was repeated at least three to five times an hour.

It was surprisingly discovered that having a control means 50 that opened the reverse airflow port 47 for less than a second, three or more times per hour during normal operations was sufficient to clean the bags without interrupting operations. The present invention allows the user to continue operations without having to stop to clean the filters 37. This provides a significant time savings and maintains maximum airflow efficiency during operations and extends the life of the filters 37.

The invention has been described in detail with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that variations and modifications will be effected with the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

THE CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A portable vacuum cleaning system comprising:

(a) a portable frame having a longitudinal axis;

(b) at least one collection tank mounted to the portable frame for collecting and transporting materials which are vacuumed up; and

(c) a self-cleaning filter system mounted to the portable frame, the self- cleaning filter system comprising:

(i) a filter house comprising a housing chamber and a filter frame, wherein the filter frame is in the housing chamber and divides the housing chamber into two chambers, an inlet chamber and an outlet chamber, the frame having filter holes and a filter mounting means for connecting a plurality of filters to the frame to ensure that air passing from the inlet chamber to the outlet chamber passes through the filters, the inlet chamber having an inlet port associated therewith and the outlet chamber being divided into at least two mini-outlet chambers by a chamber divider, each mini-outlet chamber enclosing at least one filter and each mini-outlet chamber also having a closeable outlet port and a closeable reverse airflow port, the outlet port and reverse airflow port each having an opening/closing means;

(ii) a blower means associated with the filter house so that when the outlet port is open and the reverse airflow port is closed in a mini-outlet chamber the blower means urges air to pass through the inlet port into the inlet chamber, through the filters into the mini-outlet chamber with the open outlet port, and for the mini-outlet chambers wherein the reverse airflow port is open and the outlet port is closed, the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the mini-outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the mini-outlet chambers with the outlet port open, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system; and

(iii) a control means for controlling the opening/closing means associated with the closeable outlet port and the closeable reverse airflow port for each mini- outlet chamber during operation, wherein the control means controls when the outlet port and reverse airflow port are open or closed, the control means being designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open when the outlet port is closed during operation for a time interval of not more than a second, wherein the self-cleaning filter system is associated with the collection tank in such a way that the blower means urges dirty vacuumed air to pass through the collection tank prior to passing through the inlet chamber of the filter house during operation.

2. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1, wherein the filter is a filter bag.

3. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 2, wherein the filter frame further comprises a filter bag cage associated therewith to prevent the filter bags from collapsing.

4. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1, wherein the outlet chamber is divided into at least four mini-outlet chambers.

5. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 4, wherein the outlet chamber is divided into at least six mini-outlet chambers.

6. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1, wherein the filter house further comprises an openable lid and a HEPA filter for collecting the microscopic particles.

7. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1, wherein the control means is further designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open while the outlet port is closed in each mini-outlet chamber at least three times per hour.

8. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 7, wherein the control means is designed to cause only one reverse airflow port of the filter system to be open at a time and to open each reverse airflow port of the filter system at least five times per hour.

9. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1, wherein the inlet port is closeable and further comprises an opening/closing means associated with the closeable inlet port.

10. The portable vacuum claming system of claim 9, wherein the frame is a vehicle frame having wheels.

11. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 10, further comprising a cyclone separator coupled to the vehicle frame.

12. A portable vacuum cleaning system comprising:

(a) a portable frame having a longitudinal axis;

(i) at least two filter houses, each filter house comprising a housing chamber and a filter frame, wherein the filter frame is within the housing chamber and divides the housing into two chambers, an inlet chamber and an outlet chamber, the frame having filter holes and a filter mounting means for connecting a plurality of filters to the frame to ensure that air passing between the inlet chamber and the outlet chamber passes through the filters, wherein the outlet chamber has both an outlet port and a reverse airflow port associated therewith, the outlet port and the reverse airflow port having an opening/closing means; the at least two filter houses being connected by a connection tube that connects the inlet chambers of the filter houses, wherein at least one of the filter house has an inlet port associated with the inlet chamber;

(ii) a blower means associated with each filter house so that the blower means urges air to pass through the inlet port into the inlet chamber, through the filters into the outlet chamber when the outlet port is open and the reverse airflow port is closed, and when the reverse airflow port is open and the outlet port is closed the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the connection tube into the inlet chamber of the filter house with the outlet port open and the reverse airflow port closed, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system; and

(iii) a control means for controlling the opening/closing means associated with the closeable outlet port and closeable reverse airflow port for each filter house during operation, wherein the control means controls when the outlet port and the reverse airflow port are open or closed, the control means being designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open in at least one filter house when the outlet port is closed during operation for a time interval of not more than a second, wherein the self-cleaning filter system is associated with the collection tank in such a way that the blower means urges dirty vacuumed air to pass through the collection tank prior to passing through inlet chamber of the filter house during operation.

13. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12, wherein the filter is a filter bag.

14. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 13, wherein the filter frame further comprises a filter bag cage associated therewith to prevent the filter bags from collapsing.

15. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12, wherein there are at least four filter houses.

16. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 15, wherein the outlet chamber of at least one filter house is divided into two or more mini-outlet chambers by a chamber divider.

17. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12, wherein the filter house further comprises an openable lid wherein the filter house further comprises an openable lid and a HEPA filter for collecting the microscopic particles..

18. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12, wherein the control means is further designed to cause the reverse airflow port to be open while the outlet port is closed in each mini-outlet chamber at least three times per hour.

19. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 18, wherein the control means is designed to cause only one reverse airflow port of the filter system to be open at a time and to open each reverse airflow port of the filter system at least five times per hour.

20. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12, wherein the inlet port is closeable and further comprises an opening/closing means associated with the closeable inlet port.

21. The portable vacuum claming system of claim 20, wherein the frame is a vehicle frame having wheels.

22. The portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 21, further comprising a cyclone separator coupled to the vehicle frame.

23. A method of cleaning the filters of the portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 1 during regular operation of the vacuum cleaning system, the method comprising the steps of: turning on the blower means associated with the filter system; and opening the reverse airflow port and closing the outlet port of one mini-outlet chamber for a time interval of not more than a second so that the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the mini-outlet chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the mini-outlet chambers with the outlet port open, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the reverse airflow port is opened for less than a second at least three to twenty times an hour.

25. A method of cleaning the filters of the portable vacuum cleaning system of claim 12 during regular operation of the vacuum cleaning system, the method comprising the steps of: turning on the blower means associated with the filter system; and opening the reverse airflow port and closing the outlet port of one filter house for a time interval of not more than a second so that the blower means urges the air through the reverse airflow port into the filter house chamber through the filters and into the inlet chamber, the air is then urged through the filters into the filter house chamber with the outlet port open, thereby self-cleaning the filters during operation of the filter system.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the reverse airflow port is opened for less than a second at least three to twenty times an hour.