CN106087369B - Household ironing appliance comprising a steam generator provided with a discharge hole - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to an electric household ironing appliance comprising a casing (20) containing a steam generator comprising a discharge hole (42) allowing the discharge of limescale and a removable plug (43) closing said discharge hole (42), said removable plug (43) being accessible from the outside of said casing (20), said casing comprising a cover (5) that covers said plug (43), characterized in that said cover (5) is integral with said casing (20) by means of a hinge (6), said cover (5) being able to occupy a closed position in which said cover (5) covers said plug (43) and an open position in which said cover (5) allows access to said plug (43).

Description

Household ironing appliance comprising a steam generator provided with a discharge hole

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electric household ironing appliance comprising a casing containing a steam generator comprising a discharge hole allowing the discharge of scale, and more particularly to an appliance comprising a removable plug accessible from the outside of the casing, the plug closing the discharge hole, and comprising a cover shielding the plug.

Background

Among the devices sold in commerce, ironing devices are known which comprise a casing containing a tub for generating steam under pressure, connected by a cable to an iron, the tub comprising a discharge hole allowing the discharge of scale, closed by a removable plug accessible from the outside of the casing. In such devices, the plug is usually realized in metal in order to withstand the high temperatures in the tub and is screwed onto the discharge hole. In order to avoid the user being burnt when touching the metal part of the plug, the plug may be provided with a plastic part, usually moulded on the plug, which may advantageously have a shape suitable for facilitating the handling of the plug.

However, such moulded plugs have the disadvantage of being relatively expensive to manufacture. Furthermore, the risk of using such a plug equipped with a moulded plastic part is that the user is burned if the plastic part of the plug is touched while the device is working, since the plastic part directly contacts the metal part and the temperature gradually rises while the device is working.

In order to overcome these drawbacks, it is known to cover the metal plugs with a removable plastic cap which is fixed to the housing and is no longer fixed to the metal plugs, such a separate plastic cap having the advantage of being inexpensive to implement and ensuring better thermal insulation.

However, such removable plastic covers have the disadvantage of being easily lost and of being ergonomically used, so that the device is often used without the cover, with the risk of scalding in case of contact with the plug.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the present invention is therefore to overcome these drawbacks by providing a household appliance having safety and improved ergonomics of use.

The object of the present invention is therefore to provide an electric household ironing appliance comprising a casing containing a steam generator comprising a discharge hole allowing the discharge of limescale and a removable plug closing the discharge hole, accessible from the outside of the casing, and comprising a cover that covers the plug, characterized in that the cover is integral with the casing by means of a hinge, the cover being able to occupy a closed position in which it covers the plug, and an open position in which it allows access to the plug.

Such a closure has the advantage of reducing the risk of scalding by preventing direct contact with the plug when the closure occupies the closed position. In particular, the heat transfer between the plug and the cap is blocked, since the two parts are constituted by two distinct parts, so that despite the contact between the two parts with each other, there is a thermal block at the junction between the two parts.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cover is made of plastic, advantageously polypropylene, and the hinge is obtained directly by moulding together with the cover.

This solution has the advantage of being particularly economical to implement. Furthermore, such technical features allow reducing the manufacturing costs of the device by reducing the number of assembly operations.

According to another characteristic of the invention, at least one portion of the casing is obtained directly by moulding together with the cap and the articulation.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cover and the hinge are obtained directly by moulding together with a lower shell defining the base of the casing.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the hinge is arranged below the discharge hole and the hood in the open position extends below the outlet of the discharge hole, the hood having a concave shape, the hood collecting the liquid discharged through the discharge hole.

This feature allows the cover in the open position to be used as a collector for liquid flowing out of the discharge orifice, which allows to avoid that the liquid flows in an uncontrolled manner along the casing, at the same time as dirtying the casing and avoiding that the liquid enters into the apparatus.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cover in the closed position extends substantially vertically in front of the plug and the cover in the open position comprises a free end arranged opposite the hinge, the free end being inclined downwards.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cap comprises a cavity in which the plug engages when the cap occupies the closed position, the cavity comprising a bottom wall surrounded by a perimetral wall comprising a pouring opening, the opening advantageously being heightened with respect to the bottom wall.

This feature allows the hood to be used as a conduit that directs liquid from the drain hole towards the sink. Moreover, such a cap also allows a better view of the amount of scale flowing out through the discharge hole, a large part of which is trapped inside said cavity before flowing out through the pouring opening.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the hinge is bistable, the hinge being able to occupy a first stable position in which the cover occupies the closed position and a second stable position in which the cover occupies the open position.

This feature allows to obtain a very good ergonomics of use, the hinge ensuring an automatic positioning of the cover in both positions.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the hinge produces a return torque on the cover, the direction of which is reversed when passing through an intermediate position between the closed position and the open position, the return torque tending to bring the cover towards the closed position when the cover is in a first angular range comprised between the intermediate position and the closed position, and the return torque tending to bring the cover towards the open position when the cover is in a second angular range comprised between the intermediate position and the open position.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the hinge comprises a membrane longitudinally disposed between two straight portions defining the rotation axis of the hinge, the membrane having an oval shape with two curved sides joined at the ends of the straight portions, the membrane being deformed while observing a reversal of its curvature when moving the cover between the open and closed positions.

According to another feature of the invention, the membrane has a concave upper surface when the cover occupies the open position.

This feature allows the hinge to direct water flowing from the discharge hole towards the shroud.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cap is separated from the plug by a layer of air when the cap occupies the closed position.

This feature allows further improvement of the thermal insulation between the plug and the cap.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the steam generator is constituted by a tub for generating steam under pressure, which is connected to the iron by means of a cable.

Drawings

The objects, features and advantages of the invention will be better understood from the following description of a particular embodiment thereof, given by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 is a perspective view of an ironing apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention, in which the cover of the discharge hole is shown in a closed position;

figure 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the steam generating base equipped with the device of figure 1, with the cover shown in the open position;

figure 3 is a perspective view of the base of figure 2, after assembly, the cover being shown in an open position, in which the plug is removed from the discharge hole of the tub;

figure 4 is a bottom detail view of a hood equipped with the device of figure 1;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view along the line V-V of FIG. 4;

figures 6 and 7 are perspective detail views of the cover in the open position and in the closed position, respectively.

Detailed Description

Only the elements necessary for an understanding of the present invention are shown. To facilitate reading of the drawings, like elements between different drawings bear like reference numerals.

Fig. 1 shows an ironing apparatus of the steam generating type, which conventionally comprises an iron 1 and a steam generating base 2 connected to the iron 1 by a cable 3, said cable 3 allowing the steam to be conveyed from the base 2 to the iron 1, said base 2 being powered by a cable not shown in the figures.

The steam generating base 2 comprises, in a known manner, a casing 20 containing a water container 21 equipped with a filling hole 21A, and a tub 4 for generating steam under pressure, said tub 4 being shown in broken lines in fig. 1. The tub 4 comprises a U-shaped heating resistor 40 arranged below the bottom of said tub 4, said heating resistor 40 being adjusted so as to allow the production of steam at a maximum pressure of about 4 to 6 bar, the tub 4 being supplied with water from a water container through a supply pipe 41 connected to a pump not shown in the figures.

The tub 4 also comprises a steam outlet hole equipped with an electrically operated valve 44, said electrically operated valve 44 being connected to the iron 1 through a steam conduit integrated in the cord 3, said electrically operated valve 44 being controlled to open by means of a button 10 arranged under the handle of the iron 1.

As shown in fig. 2, the casing 20 is realized by assembly of parts of plastic material obtained by moulding, and in particular comprises a lower casing 20A made of opaque polypropylene on which are mounted an intermediate casing 20B, also made of opaque polypropylene, and an upper casing 20C made of transparent or translucent polypropylene. The intermediate shell 20B and the upper shell 20C are advantageously assembled to each other by means of a moulded polypropylene connection, and said intermediate shell 20B and upper shell 20C have complementary shapes forming a space between the intermediate shell 20B and the upper shell 20C defining a container 21, said container 21 extending along the perimeter of the shell 20.

The lower shell 20A comprises a main body 22, said main body 22 forming a seat carrying said tub 4, said tub 4 comprising a side opening communicating with a rigid conduit comprising an axial end equipped with an outlet hole 42, said outlet hole 42 being closed by a removable metal plug 43.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the discharge hole 42 opens to the side of the casing 20, at the arched hole 23 arranged in the intermediate casing 20B and in the upper casing 20C, the lower casing 20A comprising, opposite this arched hole 23, a projecting support comprising a seat frame 24, said seat frame 24 being positioned underneath said duct comprising the discharge hole 42 and ensuring a good positioning of said duct.

The lower shell 20A also comprises a cover 5, the cover 5 being connected to the main body 22 of the lower shell 20A by means of a hinge 6, the hinge 6 being obtained directly by moulding together with the main body 22 and the cover 5, the hinge 6 being constituted by a zone of reduced material thickness.

As shown in fig. 4 to 7, the hinge 6 is advantageously arranged at the lower end of the cap 5 so that it can take up a closed position, as shown in fig. 1 and 7, in which said cap 5 is arranged substantially vertically while covering the plug 43 fixed to the outlet hole 42, and an open position, as shown in particular in fig. 2, 3 and 6, in which said cap 5 is turned downwards while forming an angle of about 45 ° with respect to the horizontal, so that the closed plug 43 can be accessed, so that the cap 5 extends below the outlet of the outlet hole 42.

As shown in fig. 5, the hinge 6 comprises, at each of its longitudinal ends, a straight portion 60, said straight portions 60 defining the axis of rotation of the hinge 6, these straight portions 60 being advantageously constituted by a layer of material having a thickness of about 0.4 mm.

The hinge 6 further comprises a membrane 61 of substantially oval shape, which is arranged between the two straight portions 60, said membrane 61 comprising two curved edges 62, said two curved edges 62 being connected at the ends of the straight portions 60. Said membrane 61 is advantageously made of a layer of material having a thickness of about 0.5mm, and said membrane 61 has a curved shape which is deformed when the mask 5 is transferred from the open position to the closed position, the membrane 61 preferably having a concave shape when the mask 5 occupies the open position.

The hinge 6 thus realised has the advantage of generating a restoring moment which, for the first time, opposes the movement of the cap towards the closed position when the cap 5 is brought manually from the open position to the closed position and tends to bring the cap 5 back to the open position, said restoring moment towards the open position corresponding to the first deformation phase of the membrane 61. This first deformation phase continues until the cap 5 reaches an intermediate position in which the bending of the membrane 61 is reversed and the restoring moment exerted by said membrane 61 is also reversed, so that said cap 5 is then automatically brought back towards the closed position, the membrane 61 having a convex shape.

As shown in fig. 6, the cover 5 has a concave shape and comprises a cavity 50, said cavity 50 comprising a bottom wall 51, said bottom wall 51 having a shape complementary to the shape of the arched hole 23, said cavity 50 further comprising a peripheral wall 52, said peripheral wall 52 being engaged on a rim 25 of the casing 20, said rim 25 defining the arched hole 23, said rim 25 comprising two symmetrical lateral projections 26, said lateral projections 26 being elastically engaged in two recesses 53 when the cover 5 occupies the closed position, said recesses 53 being arranged on the peripheral wall 52.

At the free end of the cover 5 opposite the hinge 6, the peripheral wall 52 comprises a through opening 54, said through opening 54 allowing the outflow of all the liquid present in the cavity 50 when the cover 5 occupies the open position, the housing 20 comprising a locking tongue 27 at the top of the arched hole 23, said locking tongue 27 engaging in said through opening 54 when the cover 5 occupies the closed position.

The advantages of the cover thus achieved will now be described.

When the user wishes to use the device, the cover 5 is placed in the closed position shown in fig. 7 by lifting the cover 5 and pressing the cover 5 so that said lateral projections 26 and said locking tongues 27 carried by the casing 20 engage, by elastic deformation, in the recesses 53 and the through openings 54 of the cover 5, respectively.

Thus, the apparatus can be used without risk of scalding the user, the metal plug 43 closing the discharge hole 42 being covered by the cover 5. In particular, in the closed position, the hood 5 has the advantage of not being in thermal contact with the metal plug 43, but being isolated from the plug 43 by an air layer, so that the temperature of the hood 5 remains low even after prolonged use of the device.

Because a light-emitting indicator disposed on the appliance gives a notice to the user, or because the user wishes to ensure the cleaning state of the tub 4, when the user wishes to perform cleaning of the tub 4 in order to discharge scale, the user brings the appliance to the side of the washing tub after ensuring that the appliance is stopped for a sufficiently long time so that the temperature of the tub 4 is the ambient temperature.

The user unlocks the lid 5 by pressing with the thumb on the locking tongue 27 inserted into the through opening 54 of the lid 5 and by pulling laterally on the top of the lid 5 so that the side projections 26 disengage from the grooves 53.

Once the hood 5 is unlocked, the user manually moves the hood 5 into the open position, the membrane 61 of the hinge 6 deforming for the first time, generating a return torque which opposes the movement of the hood 5 towards the open position. When the cap 5 reaches an intermediate position that reverses the bending of the membrane 61, the restoring moment generated by the membrane 61 changes direction and the cap 5 is automatically brought into the open position as shown in fig. 3 and 6.

The user can thus access the plug 43 and unscrew it using a screwdriver or a coin. When the plug 43 is removed, the liquid contained in the tub 4 flows out through the discharge hole 42 and carries along with it scale particles that may be present in the bottom of the tub 4.

This liquid flows by gravity into the cavity 50 of the hood 5 and then into the washing tub through an opening 54 arranged at the free end of the hood 5, said opening functioning as a pouring spout. During this draining operation, said hood 5 has the advantage of guiding the liquid coming from the drain hole 42, thus avoiding the liquid from flowing in an uncontrolled manner along the casing 20 of the apparatus, which has the risk of flowing into the interior of the apparatus.

In addition, the cover 5 has an advantage of allowing better observation of the scale particles discharged through the discharge hole 42 so that a user can better estimate the scaling state of the tub 4 and thus interval the discharging operation. In particular, the through opening 54 of the hood 5 may advantageously be slightly constricted with respect to the bottom wall 51, so as to thus allow intercepting the possible scale particles that flow out with the water of the tub 4. The through opening 54 can also be equipped with a filter screen in order to intercept larger scale particles in the cavity 50 of the hood 5 and to be able to determine the scaling state of the tub 4 more accurately therefore.

Once this expulsion operation has been carried out, the user can screw the plug 43 on the discharge hole 42 and then manually bring the cap 5 to the closed position, the membrane 61 of the hinge 6 being deformed at the first time, generating a return moment opposing the movement of the cap 5 towards the closed position. When the cap 5 reaches an intermediate position, which reverses the bending of the membrane 61, said restoring moment generated by the membrane 61 changes direction and the cap 5 is automatically brought into the closed position.

A device is thus obtained which offers great ergonomics of use, the bistable nature of the hinge 6 equipped with the cap 5 having the advantage of facilitating the operations necessary for the discharge by automatically bringing the cap 5 into the open position to accompany the outflow of the liquid discharged from the discharge hole 42 or automatically bringing the cap 5 into the closed position to avoid contact with the plug 43.

Finally, the device thus realized has the advantage of having a non-loss cover 5, the hinge 6 of said cover 5 having great mechanical strength and being directly integrated by moulding with the constituent elements of the casing, so that the operations necessary to assemble the device are reduced.

The invention is of course in no way limited to the embodiments shown and described, which are given by way of example only. Changes may be made, especially in matters of construction of different elements or by substitution of technical equivalents, without exceeding the scope of the invention.

In a variant of embodiment, not shown, the cap may not be equipped with a hole for the outflow of the liquid and comprise the shape of a pouring spout only at the edge of the cap.

Claims (10)

1. An electric household ironing appliance comprising a casing (20) containing a steam generator comprising a discharge hole (42) allowing the discharge of scale and a removable plug (43) closing said discharge hole (42), said removable plug (43) being accessible from the outside of said casing (20), and said casing comprising a cover (5) that shields said plug (43), characterized in that said cover (5) is integral with said casing (20) through a hinge (6), said cover (5) being able to occupy a closed position, in which said cover (5) shields said plug (43), and an open position, in which said cover (5) allows access to said plug (43).

2. The household appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that said cover (5) is made of plastic and in that said hinge (6) is obtained directly by moulding together with said cover (5).

3. The household appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that the cover (5) is made of polypropylene.

4. The household appliance according to claim 2, characterized in that at least one portion (20A) of the casing (20) is obtained directly by moulding together with the cover (5) and the hinge (6).

5. Household appliance according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that said hinge (6) is arranged below said discharge hole (42) and said cover (5) in the open position extends below the outlet of said discharge hole (42), said cover (5) having a concave shape, said cover collecting the liquid discharged through said discharge hole (42).

6. The household appliance according to claim 5, characterized in that the cover (5) in the closed position extends substantially vertically in front of the plug (43) and in that the cover (5) in the open position comprises a free end arranged opposite the hinge (6), said free end being inclined downwards.

7. The household appliance according to claim 6, wherein the cover (5) comprises a cavity (50), the plug (43) being engaged in the cavity (50) when the cover (5) occupies the closed position, the cavity (50) comprising a bottom wall (51) surrounded by a peripheral wall (52), the peripheral wall (52) comprising a pouring opening (54).

8. The household appliance according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the hinge (6) is bistable, the hinge (6) being able to occupy a first stable position in which the cover (5) occupies the closed position and a second stable position in which the cover (5) occupies the open position.

9. The household appliance according to claim 8, characterized in that said hinge (6) generates a return torque on said cover (5), the direction of said return torque being reversed when passing through an intermediate position between said closed position and said open position, said return torque tending to bring said cover (5) towards said closed position when said cover (5) is in a first angular range comprised between said intermediate position and said closed position, and said return torque tending to bring said cover (5) towards said open position when said cover (5) is in a second angular range comprised between said intermediate position and said open position.

10. Household appliance according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said steam generator is constituted by a tub (4) for generating steam under pressure, said tub (4) being connected to the iron (1) by means of a cable (3).

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