CN112955600A

CN112955600A - Support base

Info

Publication number: CN112955600A
Application number: CN201980058851.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 西蒙尼·巴尔迪辛; 丹尼尔·维森丁; 亚历山德罗·安托纳尔
Original assignee: De Longhi Appliances SRL
Current assignee: De Longhi Appliances SRL
Priority date: 2018-09-10
Filing date: 2019-09-09
Publication date: 2021-06-11
Anticipated expiration: 2039-09-09
Also published as: EP3850148A1; CN112955600B; WO2020053907A1; EP3850148B1

Abstract

A support base for an iron (11) is disclosed, comprising a base body (13), said base body (13) having an upper surface (18) adapted to support an iron (11), and said base body (13) comprising a channel (14), said channel (14) being configured to contain water.

Description

Support base

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a support base for an iron, in particular of the type comprising a tank made inside said support base, and an ironing apparatus comprising an iron and said support base.

Background

A number of known ironing apparatuses comprise: a support base, wherein a slot is made in or inserted into the interior of the support base; and an iron connected to the tank by a conduit.

Ironing apparatuses are generally divided into so-called "hot" apparatuses, in which the tank serves as a boiler for forming and delivering the steam to be supplied to the iron, and so-called "cold" apparatuses, in which the iron comprises a steam chamber and a pump adapted to supply the water from the tank to the steam chamber, which water is transformed into steam in the heated plate of the iron as a result of contact with the heated plate.

Said plurality of ironing apparatuses, due to their greater autonomy of ironing, are generally the choice of the users who need to iron a high number of garments and linens.

It is known that users do not particularly like ironing operations, in particular for a long time, and therefore manufacturers are looking for solutions that make ironing less tedious.

WO-A-2017/202706 describes an ironing apparatus comprising A support base and an iron, in which support base means are provided for generating an alarm signal, which means are capable of generating an audio signal when A determined position of the iron is detected. Said solution, and one that does not provide audio reproduction means, does not require attention to the geometry of any sound diffusing region, since said plurality of alarm signals does not require high fidelity reproduction.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a supporting base in an ironing apparatus, which is adapted to provide a transfer for the user while performing the plurality of ironing operations, in an attempt to make these operations pleasant, or at least less tedious to perform.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a support base adapted to provide multiple high fidelity reproduction of multiple sounds or music.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a support base which has a pleasant aesthetic appearance and which remains "visible" even between one ironing operation and another.

The applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention is set forth and characterized in the various independent claims, which describe other characteristics of the invention or various variants to the main inventive concept.

Embodiments described herein relate to a support base for an iron, the support base comprising an audio reproduction device integrated in the support base, the audio reproduction device being configured to transmit a plurality of sounds, music or others.

According to some embodiments, the support base comprises a base body provided with an upper surface suitable for supporting an iron.

The base body is at least partially hollow and a channel and an audio reproduction device are provided in the base body, the channel being adapted to receive a determined amount of water.

The audio reproduction apparatus includes an antenna or other receiving device configured to receive multiple radio waves and/or multiple radio transmissions.

The audio reproduction apparatus may be a radio device adapted to receive a plurality of signals which modulate AM/FM in amplitude and/or frequency.

According to some embodiments, the substrate may have a cylindrical shape, and thus a substantially circular cross-section.

The cylindrical shape of the base body allows to obtain an optimized sound and amplification box for the audio reproduction device positioned in the base body, thereby obtaining a high fidelity sound reproduction and an optimized diffusion of the audio reproduction device.

However, other cross-sectional shapes are also possible, such as: oval, polygonal, or other shapes.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus comprises a sound diffusing member.

According to some embodiments, the sound diffusing member has a cylindrical shape and extends substantially 360 ° around its longitudinal axis over the entire periphery of the base, so that excellent sound diffusion in all directions can be achieved.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus comprises a control unit connected to a user interface by means of which the user can activate/deactivate the audio reproduction apparatus or possibly select the type, volume or other of a plurality of sounds and/or music to be listened to.

According to some embodiments, the user interface may be integrated into the support base.

According to other embodiments, the user interface may be external to the support base and communicate with the control unit in a wireless mode.

According to some embodiments, the control unit comprises or is connected to a data communication module configured to communicate in a wireless mode with an electronic device as a user interface to receive information related to a plurality of sounds to be reproduced, such as: multiple audio files, multiple radio transmissions, or otherwise.

For example, the electronic device may be selected from a smart phone, a tablet computer, a personal computer, a smart television or other electronic devices equipped with a suitable wireless data communication interface.

According to some embodiments, the communication module may be of the bluetooth type.

According to further embodiments, a user may select an audio file, a radio transmission or other to listen to through his/her own electronic device and send the information through the communication module to the control unit, which will command the function of the diffuser device to reproduce the selected audio file and/or radio transmission.

According to various further embodiments, the audio reproduction device may comprise a microphone, by means of which a user may carry out a plurality of hands-free conversations.

Thus, the support base and the functions of supporting the iron and accumulating water also provide the user with a pleasant transition when performing the ironing operations, thereby making the ironing operations less tedious.

Drawings

These and other features of the invention will become apparent from the following description of some embodiments, given as a non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a schematic view of an ironing apparatus according to embodiments described in the present description.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is to be understood that elements and features of one embodiment may be readily combined with other embodiments without further recitation.

Detailed Description

The embodiments described herein relate to an ironing apparatus 10, said ironing apparatus 10 comprising an iron 11 and a supporting base 12, said supporting base 12 being adapted to provide a support for said iron 11 during a plurality of ironing operations and/or when said iron 11 has to be stored.

According to some embodiments, the support base 12 comprises a base 13, the base 13 comprising a lower surface 17 and an upper surface 18 adapted to rest on a support surface or plane, the upper surface 18 being opposite the lower surface 17, the upper surface 18 being adapted to support the iron 11.

The support base 12 further comprises a channel 14 configured to contain water at room temperature, the channel 14 being made in or inserted into the base 13, the channel 14 being removable from the base 13 in order to fill or possibly empty, operate the channel 14.

The housing 14 and the iron 11 are connected to each other via a feed pipe 15.

An electric pump 16 may also be present in the base 13, the electric pump 16 being configured to remove the water from the tank 14 and supply the water along the inlet pipe 15.

The base 13 also comprises the electrical components and the electrical circuits necessary for at least the functioning of the electric pump 16 and the iron 11, which can be connected to a source of energy, for example by means of a suitable power cable 19: the power grid.

According to some embodiments, the electric pump 16 and the iron 11 may be optimized to reduce noise generation to a minimum.

According to some embodiments, the base 13 may have a substantially symmetrical cylindrical shape with respect to a central axis X.

According to one aspect of the invention, the support base 12 includes an audio reproduction device 20.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus 20 comprises an antenna 27 or other receiving device, the antenna 27 being configured to receive radio waves and/or radio transmissions.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction device 20 is integrated in the base 13.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction device 20 may be disposed below the tank 14.

This arrangement is advantageous since the channel 14 and the manner in which there are no heating elements acts as an insulating layer between the upper surface 18 in contact with the iron 11 and the audio reproduction means 20.

According to some embodiments, the upper surface 18 of the base 13 may be configured to support the iron 11 in an upright position to minimize heat transfer between the iron 11 and the support base 12.

According to some embodiments, a housing base (not shown) adapted to house a rear portion of the iron 11 and possibly a plurality of clamping members adapted to removably clamp the iron 11 in the upright position may be made on the upper surface 18.

According to some embodiments, the base 13 has an upper portion 13a and a lower portion 13b, the upper portion 13a receiving the channel 14 and the lower portion 13b receiving the audio reproduction device 20.

According to some embodiments, the upper portion 13a and the lower portion 13b have a substantially circular shape, each having substantially equal diameters, according to a plan view.

According to possible solutions, the base 13 comprises an intermediate portion 13c, the intermediate portion 13c being arranged between the upper portion 13a and the lower portion 13b, the intermediate portion having a diameter smaller than a plurality of diameters of the latter upper portion 13a and lower portion 13, the intermediate portion 13c being able to house, for example, the electrical components and the electrical circuits.

The audio reproduction means 20 may for example be connected to the power supply line 19 and powered by the power supply line 19.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus 20 comprises a sound diffusing member 21, for example: one or more speakers adapted to convert a plurality of electrical signals into a plurality of acoustic signals.

According to some embodiments, the diffusion member 21 may have a circular shape and extend over the entire outer side of the basic body, extending substantially 360 ° around the central axis X.

The circular shape of the diffusion member 21 advantageously allows to mount a single speaker without interference, thus obtaining an optimal diffusion of the sounds or music in all directions.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus 20 comprises a control unit 22, the control unit 22 being configured to control the functionality of the audio reproduction apparatus 20.

The control unit 22 is connected to a user interface 23 by means of which the user can command the functions of the audio reproduction apparatus 20.

According to some embodiments, the user interface 23 may be integrated in the support base 12, for example on an outer surface of the base 13 accessible to a user.

According to other embodiments, the user interface 23 may be external to the support base 12 and communicate with the control unit 22 in a wireless mode.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction apparatus 20 comprises a communication module 24, the communication module 24 is connected to or integrated in the control unit 22, and the communication module 24 is configured to communicate with the user interface 23 in a wireless mode to receive information related to the sounds or audio signals to be reproduced.

According to some embodiments, the user interface 23 may be provided on an electronic device 25 associated with a user to communicate remotely with the control unit 22 to generally send/receive instructions and/or information.

For example, the electronic device 25 may be selected from a smart phone, a tablet computer, a personal computer, a smart television, or other electronic devices having a communication module 26 compatible with the audio reproduction device 20.

According to various embodiments, the user interface 23 may be defined by the same screen of the smartphone or tablet, through which user interface 23 the user may select an audio file to be reproduced and from an internal memory of the electronic device 25, or possibly from a website.

According to some embodiments, the communication module 24 may communicate with the user interface 23 by means of the bluetooth data transfer protocol.

According to a number of possible variants, the communication module 24 can communicate with the user interface 23 by means of other data transmission protocols, including for example: Wi-Fi for LAN (local area network), Zig-Bee, NFC (near field communication), radio waves, or others.

According to some embodiments, through the user interface 23, the user may turn the audio reproduction device 20 on and/or off and set one or more parameters for performing the selected plurality of audio files or transmissions, such as: volume, degree of low pitch, degree of high pitch, etc.

According to some embodiments, the audio reproduction device 20 may further comprise a microphone 26, the microphone 26 being adapted to receive sounds and voices from the surrounding environment and to convert the sounds and voices into electrical signals.

The microphone 26 may be connected to the control unit 22 and the communication module 24 and thus communicate with the electronic device 25 of the user so that the user may use the support base 12 to place a plurality of speakerphone calls.

According to further embodiments, the antenna 27 or other receiving device is connected to a user interface 28 provided on the base 13, by means of which a user can select the desired radio station.

Obviously, modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the support base 10 and to the ironing apparatus 12 as described heretofore, without departing from the field and scope of the present invention.

It is also clear that, although the present invention has been described with reference to some specific examples, a person of skill in the art shall certainly be able to achieve many other equivalent forms of supporting base 10 and ironing device 12, having the characteristics as set forth in the claims and hence all coming within the field of protection defined thereby.

Claims

1. A supporting base for an iron (11), characterized in that: the support base includes: a base body (13), said base body (13) having an upper surface (18), said upper surface (18) being adapted to support an iron (11), and said base body (13) comprising a channel (14), said channel (14) being configured to contain water, characterized in that: the support chassis comprises an audio reproduction device (20) integrated in the base body (13), wherein the audio reproduction device (20) comprises an antenna (27) or other receiving means, which antenna is configured to receive radio waves and/or radio transmissions, and the base body (13) has a cylindrical shape with respect to a central axis (X).

2. The support pedestal of claim 1, wherein: the base body (13) comprises an upper portion (13a) and a lower portion (13b), the channel (14) being housed in the upper portion (13a), the audio reproduction means (20) being housed in the lower portion (13b), the channel (14) being provided in an intermediate position between the lower portion (13b) and the upper surface (18).

3. The support pedestal of claim 2, wherein: the audio reproduction device (20) comprises a member (21), said member (21) being intended to diffuse sound, said member having a circular shape and extending over the entire outer side of the base body (13) and being rotated substantially 360 ° about the central axis (X).

4. A support foot according to any preceding claim, wherein: the audio reproduction apparatus (20) comprises a control unit (22), the control unit (22) being connected to a user interface (23; 28) by means of which a user can command the functions of the audio reproduction apparatus (20).

5. The support pedestal of claim 4, wherein: the control unit (22) comprises or is connected to a communication module (24), the communication module (24) being configured to communicate wirelessly with the user interface (23), wherein the user interface (23) is provided in an electronic device (25) having a communication module (26), the communication module (26) being adapted to remotely transmit to the user interface (23) and to remotely receive from the user interface (23) information relating to a plurality of sounds or audio signals to be reproduced.

6. The support pedestal of claim 5, wherein: the communication module (24) and the user interface (23) communicate with each other via a bluetooth data transmission protocol.

7. A support foot according to any preceding claim, wherein: the audio reproduction apparatus (20) comprises a microphone (26), the microphone (26) being adapted to receive a plurality of sound signals and to convert the plurality of acoustic signals into a plurality of electrical signals.

8. A support foot according to any preceding claim, wherein: the antenna (27) or other receiving device is connected to a user interface (28), the user interface (28) being provided on the base (13).

9. An ironing apparatus, characterized in that: the ironing apparatus comprises an iron (11) according to any one of claims 1 to 8 and a supporting base (12).