There are two main ways to load dirt into a sweeper’s hopper: front loading (also known as forward throw or direct throw sweeping), and rear loading (also known as overthrow sweeping), which requires dirt to be thrown over the brush.
To remove dirt and dust from the floor surface, the sweeper’s brush rotates in the opposite direction to that of machine travel. In the case of a front-loading machine, the brush pushes debris directly into the container in front of it. In an overthrow machine, all the dirt has to be thrown up and over the brush into a container at the rear.
Front loading makes it far easier to pick up heavy debris. Until now, however, this system could only be used if the debris hopper was installed at the front of the machine, thus restricting the driver's visibility.
Overthrow sweeping eliminates the problem of visibility since the debris hopper can be located behind the brush at the rear of the machine. Unfortunately, this system does not achieve the same efficiency in dirt collection as front loading. To achieve comparable results, the brush has to turn much faster, resulting in more rapid bristle wear and far more dust becoming airborne.
The BULL 200 is the first sweeper to have a front-loading system installed at the rear of the machine. This delivers top-quality floor cleaning without compromising operator visibility and ease of driving.