CN114846197A - Clothes treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

A clothes treatment device (1) is provided with: a storage chamber (200) disposed in the case (100) and storing laundry; a first supply unit (300) which supplies warm air into the housing chamber (200); a dehumidifying unit (800) for dehumidifying the air in the storage chamber (200); an outlet (202) for discharging air from the storage chamber (200); an exhaust duct (610) that guides air discharged from the discharge port (202) to the outside of the box (100); and an air mixing unit (850) which takes in air outside the box body (100) and mixes it with air flowing in the exhaust duct (610). The clothes processing device (1) can prevent the situation that the ambient humidity is increased due to exhaust gas when clothes are dried.

Description

Clothes treating device Technical Field

The present invention relates to a laundry processing apparatus for performing a process such as drying of laundry.

Background

Conventionally, there is known a laundry treatment apparatus in which laundry is hung in a storage part and the laundry can be dried by warm air. For example, patent document 1 describes an example of such a laundry treatment apparatus.

In the laundry treating apparatus, since the warm air whose humidity is increased by the moisture being peeled from the laundry in the accommodating portion is discharged to the outside of the laundry treating apparatus, the humidity around the laundry treating apparatus is likely to be increased.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2018-057413

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a laundry treating apparatus capable of suppressing the increase of peripheral humidity due to exhaust air during laundry drying.

Means for solving the problems

The clothes treatment device of the main scheme of the invention comprises: a storage chamber configured in the box body for storing clothes; a warm air supply unit configured to supply warm air into the accommodation chamber; a dehumidification section for dehumidifying air in the accommodation chamber; an outlet for discharging air in the accommodating chamber; an exhaust duct that guides air discharged from the discharge port to an outside of the case; and an air mixing part which takes in air outside the box body and mixes the air with air flowing in the exhaust duct.

According to the above configuration, when the warm air is supplied from the warm air supply unit into the storage chamber to dry the clothes, the dehumidifying unit is operated, so that the air in the storage chamber containing the moisture removed from the clothes can be dehumidified. Therefore, the moisture discharged from the clothes treatment device to the outside is reduced, and the humidity around the clothes treatment device is not easy to increase.

Further, by operating the air mixing part when drying the laundry, it is possible to discharge the air from the outside of the cabinet to the outside of the cabinet after the air from the outside of the cabinet is mixed with the air flowing in the exhaust duct so that the relative humidity is reduced. Thus, the discharged air hardly causes the influence of high-humidity air such as dew condensation on the wall surface of the room around the clothes treatment device on the periphery of the clothes treatment device.

The laundry processing apparatus according to this aspect may further include: a first opening/closing unit that opens and closes the exhaust duct; a first air intake path which takes in air outside the case; and a second air intake passage for taking in air in the accommodating chamber. In this case, the warm air supply unit generates warm air from air taken into the storage chamber of the second air intake passage and supplies the warm air into the storage chamber in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing unit, and the dehumidification unit dehumidifies the air in the storage chamber. Further, in a state where the exhaust duct is opened by the first opening/closing portion, the warm air supply portion generates warm air from air outside the box taken into the first air intake path and supplies the warm air into the housing chamber, and the air mixing portion supplies air outside the box into the exhaust duct.

According to the above configuration, the circulation drying can be performed in which the air that is warm air contacting the laundry is circulated between the storage chamber and the warm air supply unit while the exhaust duct is closed, and the air is dehumidified by the dehumidification unit. This makes it possible to dry the laundry while minimizing the discharge of moist air to the outside of the cabinet.

In addition, the exhaust duct is opened to actively exhaust the warm air, i.e., the air contacting with the clothes from the accommodating chamber, and the relative humidity of the air exhausted from the accommodating chamber is lowered by the air mixing part and then exhausted to the outside of the cabinet. Therefore, the air in the accommodating chamber is replaced, so that the air with low humidity is easy to contact with the clothes, the clothes are easy to dry, and the influence of the air with high humidity on the periphery of the clothes treatment device is inhibited.

In the case of adopting the above configuration, further, a configuration may be adopted that further includes: an ozone supply unit configured to supply air containing ozone into the housing chamber; and a second opening/closing unit that opens/closes the first air suction passage. In this case, in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing portion and the first air intake path is closed by the second opening/closing portion, the ozone supply portion generates ozone from air taken into the housing chamber of the second air intake path and supplies air containing the ozone into the housing chamber.

With this configuration, it is possible to perform a circulation type deodorization operation in which the air containing ozone is circulated between the storage chamber and the ozone supply unit while generating ozone by the ozone supply unit. This allows ozone of high concentration to act on the clothes in the storage chamber, and therefore, a high deodorizing effect can be expected. Further, since the exhaust duct and the first air intake path are closed, it is possible to prevent the high-concentration ozone from leaking to the outside of the case.

In the case where the structure including the ozone supply unit is adopted as described above, the structure including the ozone removal unit that removes ozone contained in the air flowing through the exhaust duct may be further adopted. In this case, the air mixing unit supplies air taken in from outside the casing to a downstream side of the ozone removing unit in the exhaust duct.

With such a configuration, the air from which ozone is removed by the ozone removing unit can be discharged to the outside of the clothes treatment apparatus. Further, since the air outside the housing and the air from the housing chamber having a reduced flow rate due to the ozone removing unit passing therethrough can be mixed, the air outside can be easily mixed with the air from the housing chamber, and the relative humidity of the air discharged to the outside can be easily reduced.

In the case where the first opening/closing unit is provided as described above, a structure including a steam supply unit that supplies steam into the storage chamber may be further provided. In this case, the steam supply unit supplies steam into the accommodating chamber in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing unit.

With such a configuration, wrinkles of the laundry can be smoothed by supplying steam into the storage chamber. Further, since the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing portion at this time, the leakage of the steam to the outside of the machine can be suppressed. Therefore, the accommodating chamber is easy to fill with steam, the wrinkle smoothing effect of the clothes is improved, and the humidity rise around the clothes processing device can be inhibited.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a laundry treatment apparatus capable of suppressing the increase of peripheral humidity due to exhaust air during laundry drying.

The effects and significance of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of the embodiments shown below. However, the following embodiments are merely examples for carrying out the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments.

Drawings

Fig. 1 (a) is a front view of a laundry treating apparatus of an embodiment, and fig. 1 (b) is a right side view of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment taken along a position of the first supply unit.

Fig. 3 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment taken along a position of the second supply unit.

Fig. 4 (a) and (b) are top sectional views of the clothes treating apparatus according to the embodiment in a state where the cover is removed and in a state where the cover is attached, respectively.

Fig. 5 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment taken along a position of an air suction duct of the first supply unit.

Fig. 6 (a) is a top cross-sectional view of the right side of the laundry treatment apparatus taken along the position of the exhaust unit according to the embodiment, and fig. 6 (b) is a side cross-sectional view of the upper portion of the laundry treatment apparatus taken along the position of the exhaust unit according to the embodiment.

Fig. 7 (a) is a front cross-sectional view of a main part of the laundry treatment apparatus taken along a front position of the air circulation unit according to the embodiment, and fig. 7 (b) is a front view of the air circulation unit with the cover removed according to the embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a side sectional view of a main part of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment.

Fig. 9 (a) is a rear view of the dehumidifying unit disposed on the rear surface of the storage compartment according to the embodiment, and fig. 9 (b) is a top cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry processing apparatus according to the embodiment, which is taken along a line a-a' of fig. 9 (a).

Fig. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a laundry treatment apparatus according to an embodiment.

Fig. 11 is a flowchart illustrating operation control of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment.

Description of the reference numerals

1: a laundry treating apparatus; 100: a box body; 200: a housing chamber; 202: an outlet port; 300: a first supply unit (warm air supply unit, ozone supply unit); 351: a first pipe (first air suction path); 352: a second pipeline (second air suction path); 360: an intake shutter (second opening/closing section); 400: a second supply unit (steam supply section); 600: an exhaust unit; 610: an exhaust duct; 620: an exhaust shutter plate (first opening/closing portion); 630: an ozone removal filter (ozone removal unit); 800: a dehumidification unit (dehumidification section); 850: an air mixing unit (air mixing section).

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 (a) is a front view of the laundry treating apparatus 1, and fig. 1 (b) is a right side view of the laundry treating apparatus 1. Fig. 2 is a front sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along a position of the first supply unit 300. In fig. 2, the second supply unit 400 and the air circulation unit 700 are not illustrated. Fig. 3 is a front sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along a position of the second supply unit 400. The illustration of the air circulation unit 700 is omitted in fig. 3. Fig. 4 (a) and (b) are top sectional views of the laundry treating apparatus 1 in a state where the cover 240 is removed and in a state where the cover is attached, respectively. The illustration of the air circulation unit 700 and the dehumidification unit 800 is omitted in fig. 4 (a) and (b). Fig. 5 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along a position of the suction duct 350 of the first supply unit 300. In fig. 2, the flow of the ozone-containing air and the warm air is shown by solid arrows. In fig. 3, the flow of steam is indicated by solid arrows, and the flow of dew condensation water is indicated by broken arrows. In fig. 5, the flow of air from outside the laundry treatment apparatus 1 is shown by solid arrows, and the flow of air from inside the storage chamber 200 is shown by broken arrows. Further, in fig. 3, for convenience of explanation, the hanger table 260 located at the front side of the cross section is drawn by a one-dot chain line.

The laundry treatment apparatus 1 includes a cabinet 100, and the cabinet 100 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape elongated in the longitudinal direction. Legs 110 are provided at four corners of the outer bottom surface of the casing 100. A storage chamber 200 for storing various clothes such as business suits and overcoat in a suspended state is disposed inside the cabinet 100. The receiving chamber 200 has a longitudinally long rectangular parallelepiped shape. Further, a first supply unit 300 capable of supplying warm air and ozone to the housing chamber 200 and a second supply unit 400 capable of supplying steam to the housing chamber 200 are disposed below the housing chamber 200 inside the case 100. The first supply unit 300 corresponds to the warm air supply unit and the ozone supply unit of the present invention, and the second supply unit 400 corresponds to the steam supply unit of the present invention.

The front surface of the storage chamber 200 is opened as a laundry inlet 201. A portion of the front surface of the housing 100 corresponding to the inlet 201 is opened. A door 500 is provided on the front surface of the cabinet 100. The door 500 has substantially the same size as the front surface of the cabinet 100. The inlet 201 is covered with a door 500. The right end of the door 500 is coupled to the case 100 by a hinge portion not shown, and the door 500 can be opened forward with the hinge portion as a fulcrum.

The storage chamber 200 is provided with a first supply port 210 and a second supply port 220 adjacent to each other at the center of the bottom surface. The first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 have a substantially semicircular cylindrical shape with linear portions on both sides. The arc-shaped portion 211 of the first supply port 210 and the arc-shaped portion 221 of the second supply port 220 are curved in opposite directions to each other when viewed from above. As a result, the shape of the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 together is a circular shape like a one-dot chain line in fig. 4 (a). A fine gap is provided between the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220, and a fitting boss 230 having a fitting hole 231 is provided in the gap.

A cover 240 is disposed above the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 so as to cover them. The cover 240 includes a disk-shaped top surface portion 241 and a peripheral surface portion 242 extending obliquely downward from the peripheral edge of the top surface portion 241. The top surface portion 241 is larger in size than the combined size of the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220. A shaft 243 protruding downward is formed at the center of the rear surface of the top surface portion 241. The shaft 243 is fitted to the fitting hole 231 of the fitting boss 230 so as to form a predetermined gap between the top surface portion 241 of the cover 240 and the first and second supply ports 210 and 220. A plurality of discharge holes 244 are formed in the circumferential surface 242 of the cover 240 over the entire circumference. Discharge hole 244 has a rectangular shape elongated in the radial direction of cover 240, and is located around first supply port 210 and second supply port 220, that is, outside the projection area of first supply port 210 and second supply port 220 in cover 240. Accordingly, dust and foreign substances falling from the laundry are not easily introduced into the first and second supply ports 210 and 220 through the discharge hole 244. A predetermined gap is provided between the outer peripheral edge of the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200.

A bottom air inlet 250 having a plurality of holes is provided in the right front portion of the bottom surface of the storage chamber 200.

A hanger table 260 is provided at a central portion of the top surface of the storage chamber 200 in the front-rear direction. The hanger 260 includes a rod 261 having a circular bar shape extending in the left-right direction, and a support plate 262 supporting left and right ends of the rod 261 from a top surface of the storage chamber 200. The hanger with the clothes hung thereon is hung on the rod 261 of the hanger stand 260. Thus, the laundry is held in a state of being suspended from the top surface of the receiving chamber 200 by the rod 261 of the hanger table 260. As shown in fig. 2 and 3, a plurality of pieces of clothes can be hung side by side on the rod 261 such that the front-rear direction of the clothes is the extending direction of the rod 261.

Referring to fig. 2 and 5, the first supply unit 300 includes: a first supply duct 310, an ozone generator 320, a heater 330, a blower fan 340, and an air suction duct 350.

In the first supply duct 310, the introduction port 311 is connected to the discharge port 342 of the blower fan 340, and the discharge port 312 is connected to the inlet of the first supply port 210. An ozone generator 320 is disposed in the first supply duct 310 near the inlet 311. The first supply pipe 310 has the following shape: extends leftward from the inlet 311, is bent so as to be folded rightward from a portion beyond the position where the ozone generator 320 is disposed, and then extends upward to the first supply port 210.

The ozone generator 320 is a discharge type ozone generator, and generates discharge such as corona discharge or silent discharge between a pair of electrodes to generate ozone from air passing between the pair of electrodes. The heater 330 is disposed in the first supply duct 310 on the first supply port 210 side of the ozone generator 320, and heats the air flowing in the first supply duct 310. As the heater 330, for example, a PTC heater can be used.

The blower fan 340 is a centrifugal fan, and has a suction port 341 on a side surface thereof and a discharge port 342 on a peripheral surface thereof. The blower fan 340 intakes air from the intake port 341 and sends the intake air to the ozone generator 320 in the first supply duct 310. The blower fan 340 may be a fan other than a centrifugal fan, such as an axial fan.

A front surface air inlet 101 is formed in the front surface of the casing 100 at a position facing the air inlet 341 of the blower fan 340. The front surface air inlet 101 is provided with a dust filter 120 that removes dust and the like contained in the air taken in from the front surface air inlet 101.

In the door 500, a plurality of vent holes 501 are formed in the rear surface at positions corresponding to the front surface air inlet 101 of the casing 100, and an air inlet 502 is formed in the bottom surface. Inside the door 500, the suction port 502 communicates with a plurality of vent holes 501.

An intake duct 350 is provided between the front surface air inlet 101, the bottom surface air inlet 250, and the intake port 341. The air intake duct 350 is composed of a first duct 351 connected to the front surface air inlet 101, a second duct 352 connected to the bottom surface air inlet 250, and a third duct 353 connecting the first and second ducts 351 and 352 to the suction port 341. The first pipe 351 corresponds to a first suction path of the present invention, and the second pipe 352 corresponds to a second suction path of the present invention.

A suction damper (damper)360 is provided to the third tube 353 of the suction tube 350. The intake shutter 360 includes an opening/closing plate 361 and a shutter motor 362 for rotating the opening/closing plate 361. The intake shutter 360 corresponds to a second opening/closing portion of the present invention.

The opening-closing plate 361 is switched between a first closing position that closes the outlet 352a of the second duct 352 and a second closing position that closes the outlet 351a of the first duct 351. When the shutter 361 is switched to the first closing position, the air outside the laundry treatment apparatus 1 can be sucked through the front air inlet 101, and the second duct 352 is closed. On the other hand, when the opening/closing plate 361 is switched to the second closing position, the air in the storage chamber 200 can be sucked through the bottom air inlet 250, and the first duct 351 is closed. Hereinafter, the outside of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 is referred to as an outside of the machine.

Referring to fig. 3, the second supply unit 400 includes: a second supply conduit 410, a steam generating device 420, and a drain 430. The second supply duct 410 has a shape in which a lower portion bulges rightward. The second supply duct 410 is provided at an upper end thereof with an outlet 411 connected to an inlet of the second supply port 220. Further, an introduction port 412 is provided on the right side of the lower portion of the second supply duct 410. Further, the water storage part 413 is provided below the introduction port 412 in the second supply duct 410 so that the bottom thereof is lower than the introduction port 412. A discharge port 414 is provided on the bottom surface of the water storage part 413.

The steam generating device 420 includes: a water supply tank 440, a water supply tank 450, a pump assembly 460, and a steam generator 470. The water supply tank 440 stores therein water to be supplied to the steam generator 470. The water supply tank 440 is detachably installed in a water supply tank installation portion, not shown, in the tank 100. When the water supply tank 440 is installed in the water supply tank installation section, the supply port 441 thereof is connected to the inlet 451 of the water supply tank 450 from above. An on-off valve 442 is provided at the supply port 441, and when the supply port 441 is connected to the inlet 451, the on-off valve 442 is opened to supply water from the water supply tank 440 to the water supply tank 450, and the entire water supply tank 450 is filled with water.

The pump assembly 460 includes: a pump 461, a connection hose 462, and a water supply hose 463. A suction port of the pump 461 is connected to an outlet 452 of the water supply tank 450 via a connection hose 462. A water supply hose 463 is connected to a discharge port of the pump 461. The pump 461 sucks water in the water supply tank 450 through the connection hose 462 and sends it to the steam generator 470 through the water supply hose 463.

The steam generator 470 includes a main body 471 and a heater 472, and is attached to the introduction port 412 of the second supply duct 410 via an unillustrated heat insulating member. The body 471 is formed of a metal material such as aluminum die cast and has a steam generation chamber 473 inside. Further, the main body 471 is provided with a water supply port 474 to which a water supply hose 463 is connected above the steam generation chamber 473, and a discharge port 475 connected to the inside of the second supply duct 410 is provided to the right of the steam generation chamber 473. The heater 472 is embedded in the body portion 471.

The body 471 is heated by the heater 472 to a high temperature. The water fed from the pump 461 falls to the bottom of the steam generating chamber 473 and evaporates, thereby generating high-temperature steam. The generated steam is discharged into the second supply pipe 410 through the discharge port 475.

The drain 430 includes a drain tank 480 and a drain hose 490. The drain hose 490 has a connection port 491 at an upper end thereof, which is connected to the discharge port 414 of the second supply pipe 410. A baffle 492 is disposed at the connection port 491 so as to close the discharge port 414. The baffle 492 is a fine mesh screen made of metal, for example, and is used to prevent ozone supplied into the housing chamber 200 during the deodorization and sterilization operation from leaking into the interior of the box 100 through the drain hose 490.

The drain tank 480 is a container for collecting dew-condensed water generated in the second supply pipe 410. The drain tank 480 is detachably provided in a not-shown drain tank installation portion in the tank 100. When the drain tank 480 is disposed at the drain tank disposition portion, the inlet 481 thereof is located directly below the lower end of the drain hose 490.

The inlet and outlet 102 of the water supply tank 440 and the drain tank 480 provided in the tank 100 is provided at the front surface of the tank 100 at the positions of the front surfaces of the tank 440 and the drain tank 480. The access opening 102 is covered with an openable and closable cover 103 (see fig. 1). The user can get the water supply tank 440 and the drain tank 480 into and out of the case 100 by opening the door 500 and opening the cover 103.

Referring to fig. 1, a discharge port 202 is formed on the top surface of the housing chamber 200 on the left side and slightly in front of the center. An exhaust hood 270 is removably attached to the exhaust port 202. The exhaust hood 270 is provided with a plurality of exhaust louvers 271. In addition, a lint filter 272 for removing lint and the like contained in the air is disposed inside the exhaust hood 270.

An exhaust unit 600 for exhausting air in the storage chamber 200 to the outside of the machine is provided between the top surface of the storage chamber 200 and the top surface of the case 100 at the discharge port 202.

Fig. 6 (a) is a top cross-sectional view of the right side of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 taken along the position of the exhaust unit 600, and fig. 6 (b) is a side cross-sectional view of the upper portion of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 taken along the position of the exhaust unit 600. In fig. 6 (a), the dehumidifying unit 800 is not shown.

The exhaust unit 600 includes: an exhaust duct 610, an exhaust shutter 620, and an ozone removal filter 630. The exhaust duct 610 extends rearward from the exhaust port 202. An exhaust port 104 having a plurality of holes is formed in the rear surface of the case 100, and an exhaust duct 610 is connected to the exhaust port 104. The left portion of the top surface of the receiving chamber 200 extends to the rear surface of the case 100, and forms the lower surface of the exhaust duct 610. The exhaust duct 610 guides air discharged from the discharge port 202 to the outside of the machine.

The exhaust shutter 620 is provided in the exhaust duct 610, and opens and closes the exhaust duct 610. The exhaust shutter plate 620 includes an opening/closing plate 621 and a shutter motor 622 that rotates the opening/closing plate 621. A communication port 611 for communicating the front side duct and the rear side duct is formed in the middle of the exhaust duct 610 by narrowing the vertical width in the duct. The opening-closing plate 621 switches between a closed position that closes the communication port 611 and an open position that opens the communication port 611. The communication port 611 is opened by the opening/closing plate 621, the exhaust duct 610 is closed, the communication port 611 is opened, and the exhaust duct 610 is opened. The exhaust shutter 620 corresponds to the first opening/closing portion of the present invention.

The ozone removing filter 630 is disposed behind the exhaust damper 620, i.e., downstream of the flow of air, in the exhaust duct 610. An activated carbon/catalyst filter that adsorbs and decomposes ozone may be used in the ozone removing filter 630. The ozone removing filter 630 removes ozone contained in the air flowing in the exhaust duct 610. The ozone removing filter 630 corresponds to the ozone removing unit of the present invention.

Fig. 7 (a) is a front sectional view of a main part of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 taken along a front position of the air circulation unit 700, and fig. 7 (b) is a front view of the air circulation unit 700 with the cover 712b removed. Fig. 8 is a side sectional view of a main part of the laundry treating apparatus 1. Fig. 9 (a) is a rear view of the dehumidifying unit 800 disposed on the rear surface of the housing chamber 200, and fig. 9 (b) is a top cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry processing apparatus 1 taken along a line a-a' of fig. 9 (a). In fig. 7 (a) and 8, the flow of air blown out from the air circulation unit 700 is shown by solid line arrows, broken line arrows, and one-dot chain line arrows. In fig. 9 (b), the flow of the cooling air is indicated by solid arrows. Further, in fig. 7 (a), for convenience of explanation, the hanger table 260 located forward of the cross section is drawn by a one-dot chain line.

The air circulation unit 700 is disposed at the bottom inside the housing chamber 200 and near the rear surface of the housing chamber 200. The air circulation unit 700 sucks air in the storage compartment 200 and blows the air out of the storage compartment 200, and the blown air is directed to the hung laundry.

The air circulation unit 700 includes a circulation fan 710 and a ventilation board (ventilator) mechanism 720.

The circulation fan 710 is a cross-flow fan, and includes a fan 711, a housing 712, and a fan motor 713. The fan 711 has an impeller 711a arranged in a cylindrical shape, and has an axial dimension much larger than a radial dimension. A fan shaft 714 is provided at the center of the fan 711. Both end portions of the fan shaft 714 protrude from both end surfaces of the fan 711.

The fan 711 is housed in the casing 712, and both ends of the fan shaft 714 are rotatably supported by both side surfaces of the casing 712. The housing 712 is composed of a main body 712a having an open front surface and a cover 712b covering the front surface of the main body 712 a. A suction port 715 that opens forward is provided in the casing 712 on the front side of the fan 711, i.e., on the front surface of the cover 712b, and a discharge port 716 that opens upward is provided on the rear side of the fan 711. The suction port 715 is open in a direction along the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200, and has a lower end slightly higher than the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200. The suction port 715 is provided with a plurality of lattices 715a extending in a lattice shape. The axial dimensions of the suction port 715 and the discharge port 716 are substantially the same as the dimensions of the fan 711. That is, the suction port 715 and the discharge port 716 have axially long shapes.

A filter 717 is disposed between the suction port 715 and the fan 711 in the casing 712. The filter 717 traps dust sucked from the suction port 715 together with air.

The right end of the fan shaft 714 passes through the right side surface of the housing 712, and further passes through the right side surface of the storage chamber 200. A portion of the right side surface of the housing chamber 200 corresponding to the air circulation unit 700 is recessed inward, and a fan motor 713 is mounted on the outside of the portion. The fan shaft 714 penetrating the right side surface of the housing chamber 200 is coupled to a rotor (not shown) of the fan motor 713.

The fan motor 713 drives the fan 711 to rotate via the fan shaft 714. When the fan 711 rotates, air is sucked from the suction port 715, and the sucked air is sent by the fan 711 and blown out from the discharge port 716.

The vent plate mechanism 720 includes a vent plate 721 and a vent plate motor 722.

The ventilation plate 721 has a square shape elongated in the axial direction of the circulation fan 710, and has a size slightly larger than the discharge port 716 of the circulation fan 710. Eaves 723 are provided at both left and right ends of the ventilation plate 721, and a ventilation plate shaft 724 is provided at a lower end of the eaves 723. The circulation fan 710 is provided with a support portion 718 at the rear upper end portion of both side surfaces of the casing 712. The ventilation board shafts 724 on both sides of the ventilation board 721 are rotatably supported by the support portions 718 on both sides of the housing 712. Thereby, the ventilation plate 721 is positioned above the discharge port 716 and can swing in the vertical direction.

The right end of the air plate shaft 724 penetrates the right support portion 718, and further penetrates the right side surface of the housing chamber 200. A ventilation board motor 722 is mounted above the fan motor 713 outside the right side surface of the housing chamber 200. The ventilation board shaft 724 penetrating the right side surface of the housing chamber 200 is coupled to a rotor (not shown) of the ventilation board motor 722.

The ventilation board motor 722 swings the ventilation board 721 via the ventilation board shaft 724 by rotating forward and backward by a predetermined rotation angle. The air blown upward from the discharge port 716 of the circulation fan 710 is turned by contacting the ventilation plate 721. The turning angle of the air changes according to the angle of the swinging ventilation board 721, and the direction in which the air, i.e., wind, goes changes.

The fan shaft 714 of the circulation fan 710 is a rotation shaft when the fan 711 rotates, and the ventilation plate shaft 724 of the ventilation plate mechanism 720 is a swing shaft when the ventilation plate 721 swings. As shown in fig. 8, the circulation fan 710, i.e., the air circulation unit 700, is disposed at the bottom of the housing chamber 200 in the following state: the axial directions of the rotation shaft of the fan 711 and the swing shaft of the ventilation plate 721 are parallel or substantially parallel to the left-right direction, i.e., the front-rear direction of the laundry hung by the rod 261 of the hanger table 260. In other words, the rod 261 of the hanger table 260 holds the laundry in the upper portion of the receiving chamber 200 in a state that: the front-rear direction of the laundry hung on the rod 261 is parallel or substantially parallel to the axial direction of the rotation shaft of the fan 711 of the air circulation unit 700 and the oscillation shaft of the ventilation plate 721. At this time, in the circulation fan 710, the center in the axial direction of the rotation shaft of the fan 711 substantially coincides with the center of the rod 261.

A dehumidifying unit 800 for dehumidifying air in the housing chamber 200 is disposed between the rear surface of the housing chamber 200 and the rear surface of the case 100.

The dehumidifying unit 800 includes: a circulation air path 810 for circulating air between the dehumidifying unit 800 and the housing 200, a heat exchanger 820 provided in the circulation air path 810, a cooling fan 830 for feeding cooling air to the heat exchanger 820, and a cooling duct 840 through which cooling air fed to the heat exchanger 820 flows. The dehumidifying unit 800 corresponds to a dehumidifying part of the present invention.

The circulation air passage 810 includes an inlet duct 811, an outlet duct 812, and a heat exchanger 820 disposed between the ducts 811 and 812. That is, the heat exchanger 820 constitutes a part of the circulation air passage 810. An inlet 203 for introducing air into the circulation air duct 810 is formed in the rear surface of the housing chamber 200 above the right end of the air circulation unit 700, and an outlet 204 for introducing air from the circulation air duct 810 is formed above the inlet 203. The inlet pipe 811 is connected to the inlet 203, extends rearward from the inlet 203, bends, and extends upward. The outlet duct 812 is connected to the outlet port 204, extends rearward from the outlet port 204, bends, and extends downward. A drain hole 813 is formed in the lower surface of the introduction pipe 811. The drain hose 850 is connected to the drain hole 813. The drain hose 850 is connected to the water storage part 413 of the second supply pipe 410.

The heat exchanger 820 includes a plurality of heat transfer pipes 821 arranged in the left-right direction at predetermined intervals. Each heat transfer pipe 821 is flat in the left-right direction and extends in the up-down direction. In the heat exchanger 820, a lower joint plate 822 and an upper joint plate 823 are formed at lower and upper end portions of the plurality of heat transfer pipes 821, respectively. Connection ports 824 and 825 each having an opening 824a and 825a connected to the heat transfer pipe 821 are formed in the lower connecting plate 822 and the upper connecting plate 823, and the inlet pipe 811 and the outlet pipe 812 are connected to the connection ports 824 and 825, respectively. Further, in the heat exchanger 820, a left side plate 826 and a right side plate 827 are formed between the lower connection plate 822 and the upper connection plate 823 so as to cover both the left and right sides of the plurality of heat transfer pipes 821, respectively. The plurality of heat transfer pipes 821 are surrounded by the lower tie plate 822, the upper tie plate 823, the left side panel 826, and the right side panel 827, thereby forming a cooling air passage 828 in which the plurality of heat transfer pipes 821 are housed.

The cooling fan 830 is a centrifugal fan, and includes a fan 832 and a motor 833 for rotating the fan 832 in a housing 831. The housing 831 has a suction port 834 provided in a side surface thereof and a discharge port 835 provided in a peripheral surface thereof. A fan other than the centrifugal fan, for example, an axial fan may be used as the cooling fan 830.

Cooling duct 840 has one end having a shape corresponding to discharge port 835 of cooling fan 830 and connected to discharge port 835, and the other end having a shape corresponding to the inlet of cooling air passage 828 of heat exchanger 820 and connected to the inlet of cooling air passage 828.

An intake port 105 and an exhaust port 106 formed of a plurality of holes are provided on the rear surface of the casing 100. Suction port 834 of cooling fan 830 is connected to suction port 105, and the outlet of cooling air passage 828 of heat exchanger 820 is connected to exhaust port 106.

The dehumidification unit 800 is formed of a resin material with an inlet pipe 811, an outlet pipe 812, and a cooling pipe 840, and the heat exchanger 820 is also formed of a resin material. In this way, by forming the heat exchanger 820 from a resin material, the dehumidification unit 800 can be reduced in weight.

An air scoop 280 is provided on the rear surface of the housing chamber 200 so as to cover the front of the introduction port 203. The air scoop 280 has an air inlet 281 opening toward the lower side, that is, the air circulation unit 700 side, and receives a part of the air blown out by the air circulation unit 700 and guides the air to the circulation air duct 810 through the air inlet 203.

An air mixing unit 850 is provided between the top surface of the housing chamber 200 and the top surface of the box body 100 so as to be adjacent to the exhaust duct 610. The air mixing unit 850 takes in air outside the case 100, i.e., outside the machine, and mixes it with air flowing in the exhaust duct 610. The air mixing unit 850 corresponds to an air mixing portion of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 6 (a), the air mixing unit 850 includes a mixing fan 860 and an introduction duct 870. The mixing fan 860 is a centrifugal fan, and a fan 862 and a motor 863 for rotating the fan 862 are provided in the housing 861. The housing 861 has a suction port 864 provided on a side surface thereof, and a discharge port 865 provided on a peripheral surface thereof. The mixing fan 860 may be a fan other than a centrifugal fan, such as an axial fan.

An inlet 612 is formed in the exhaust duct 610 downstream of the ozone removing filter 630 in the air flow. The introduction pipe 870 has one end connected to the introduction port 612 and the other end connected to the discharge port 865 of the mixing fan 860.

An intake port 107 having a plurality of holes is provided in the rear surface of the casing 100. Suction port 864 of mixing fan 860 is connected to suction port 107. The suction port 107 may be spaced apart from the exhaust port 104 by a distance that air discharged from the exhaust port 104 is sucked without being discharged.

Fig. 10 is a block diagram showing the structure of the laundry treatment apparatus 1.

In addition to the above configuration, the laundry processing apparatus 1 further includes an operation unit 901 and a control unit 902.

The operation unit 901 includes operation buttons such as a selection button for selecting an operation mode and a start button for starting operation, and outputs an operation signal corresponding to the operation button operated by the user to the control unit 902.

The controller 902 includes a microcomputer, various driving circuits, and the like, and controls the ozone generator 320, the heater 330, the blowing fan 340, and the suction damper 360 of the first supply unit 300, the pump 461 and the heater 472 of the second supply unit 400, the exhaust damper 620 of the exhaust unit 600, the fan motor 713 and the ventilation board motor 722 of the air circulation unit 700, the cooling fan 830 of the dehumidification unit 800, the mixing fan 860 of the air mixing unit 850, and the like.

The laundry processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment can execute a deodorization/sterilization operation for performing deodorization/sterilization on laundry, a drying operation for drying laundry, and a wrinkle smoothing operation for smoothing wrinkles of laundry.

Fig. 11 は shows a flowchart す of operation control を of laundry treatment apparatus 1, fig. である.

When the operation for starting the operation is performed, the control section 902 determines that any one of the deodorization/sterilization operation, the drying operation, and the wrinkle smoothing operation has been selected (S1).

When the deodorization/sterilization operation is selected (S1: deodorization/sterilization), the deodorization/sterilization operation is started and the controller 902 executes the deodorization/sterilization process (S2). In the deodorization and sterilization process, the controller 902 operates the blower fan 340 and the ozone generator 320 in the first supply unit 300. Before the operation is started, that is, when the laundry treating apparatus 1 is in the stopped state, the opening/closing plate 361 of the intake shutter plate 360 is located at the first closed position, and the opening/closing plate 621 of the exhaust shutter plate 620 is located at the open position. The control unit 902 does not operate the intake shutter plate 360 and the exhaust shutter plate 620, and maintains the state in which the opening/closing plate 361 is at the first closing position and the opening/closing plate 621 is at the opening position.

As shown by the solid arrows in fig. 5, the air outside the machine is sucked into the intake duct 350 from the front surface intake port 101 by the operation of the blower fan 340, and is sent into the first supply duct 310.

As shown in fig. 2, the air flowing in the first supply duct 310 passes through the ozone generator 320, and at this time, the ozone generated in the ozone generator 320 is mixed into the air. Thus, the air containing ozone passes through the first supply line 310, reaches the first supply port 210, and is discharged from the first supply port 210 into the housing chamber 200. The discharged air containing ozone collides with the cover 240 and spreads around, a part of the air is discharged from the plurality of discharge holes 244, and the rest of the air is discharged from between the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the storage chamber 200. Thus, the air containing ozone is diffused by the cover 240 and then travels to the clothes above, and comes into contact with the clothes over a large area. The clothes are deodorized and sterilized by the deodorizing and sterilizing action of ozone.

As shown by the one-dot chain line arrow in fig. 6 (a), the air whose ozone concentration has been reduced by performing deodorization and sterilization of the laundry is discharged from the discharge port 202 provided on the top surface of the storage compartment 200 into the exhaust duct 610, flows through the exhaust duct 610, and is discharged from the exhaust port 104 to the outside of the machine. The air flowing in the exhaust duct 610 passes through the ozone removing filter 630. Thereby, ozone in the air is removed, and the air reduced to an appropriate ozone concentration is discharged to the outside of the machine.

Further, in the deodorization and sterilization process, the controller 902 drives the fan motor 713 to operate the circulation fan 710 and drives the ventilation board motor 722 to swing the ventilation board 721 in the vertical direction in the air circulation unit 700. In this case, the ventilation board 721 may continuously swing or may stop for a predetermined time every time it swings back and forth or a plurality of times it swings back and forth.

As shown in fig. 7 (a), the air containing ozone in the storage chamber 200 is taken into the housing 712 through the suction port 715 and blown out through the discharge port 716 as an ozone wind. The blown ozone wind is deflected by the ventilation board 721 and then goes to the clothes. At this time, the ventilation board 721 swings and the turning angle of the ozone wind changes, so that the ozone wind comes into contact with the laundry from all directions. This improves the efficiency of contact between the ozone wind and the clothes, and makes it easier to deodorize and sterilize the clothes. In addition, the laundry is blown by ozone wind from various directions, so that the hung laundry is shaken. This makes it possible to cause ozone to reach portions of the clothing, such as underarm portions, which are difficult to reach when the clothing is at rest. In addition, dust attached to the laundry easily falls.

Further, the laundry is hung on the rod 261 of the laundry stand 260 such that the front-rear direction thereof is parallel to the axial direction of the swing shaft of the ventilation plate 721 of the air circulation unit 700. Therefore, even when a plurality of clothes are stored in the storage chamber 200 as shown in fig. 7 (a), the ozone wind discharged from the circulation fan 710 and deflected by the ventilation plate 721 easily passes through the space between the clothes and touches the upper portion of the storage chamber 200. Therefore, the ozone wind can easily contact with a plurality of clothes in all directions, and can well deodorize and sterilize the plurality of clothes.

When a predetermined deodorization/sterilization time has elapsed, the controller 902 stops the operation of the ozone generator 320, the blower fan 340, the circulation fan 710, and the ventilation plate 721, and terminates the deodorization/sterilization process. Thus, the deodorization/sterilization operation is ended.

When controller 902 determines that the drying operation is selected in step S1 (S1: drying), the drying operation is started. First, the control section 902 performs a circulation drying process (S3). In the circulation drying process, the controller 902 operates the intake shutter 360 to switch the opening/closing plate 361 from the first closing position to the second closing position. Then, the control unit 902 operates the exhaust shutter plate 620 to switch the opening/closing plate 621 from the open position to the closed position. Then, the control section 902 operates the blower fan 340 and the heater 330 in the first supply unit 300.

As shown by the dotted arrows in fig. 5, the air in the storage compartment 200 is sucked into the suction duct 350 through the bottom suction port 250 and is sent into the first supply duct 310 by the operation of the blower fan 340.

As shown in fig. 2, the air flowing through first supply duct 310 is heated by heater 330 to become warm air at a temperature suitable for drying (e.g., about 60 ℃). Then, the warm air reaches the first supply port 210, and is discharged from the first supply port 210 into the accommodation chamber 200. The discharged warm air is diffused by the cover 240 as well as the air containing ozone, and then, the air goes to the clothes above, and comes into contact with the clothes over a large area. Thereby, the laundry is dried.

During the circulation drying process, the exhaust duct 610 is closed by the exhaust shutter 620. Therefore, the air in the storage chamber 200 is not discharged from the outlet 202 and is not discharged to the outside of the box 100. The air circulates between the receiving chamber 200 and the suction duct 350, the blower fan 340, and the first supply duct 310. The temperature of the air taken into the first supply duct 310 slowly increases, and thus the output of the heater 330 decreases accordingly. Thereby, the temperature of the air discharged into the housing chamber 200 is maintained at an appropriate temperature.

In the circulation drying process, the control section 902 operates the circulation fan 710 in the air circulation unit 700 and swings the ventilation board 721 in the up-down direction. Then, the control unit 902 operates the cooling fan 830 of the dehumidification unit 800.

As shown in fig. 7 (a), the air in the storage chamber 200 heated by the supply of the warm air is taken into the housing 712 through the intake port 715 and blown out through the discharge port 716 as the warm air. The blown warm air is turned by the oscillating ventilation board 721, thereby coming into contact with the laundry from various directions. This improves the efficiency of contact between the warm air and the clothes, and the clothes are easily dried. Further, by shaking the clothes, warm air can be made to touch a portion of the clothes that is difficult to touch in a state where the clothes are stationary, and dust attached to the clothes becomes easy to drop.

Further, as in the case of the deodorization and sterilization operation, even when a plurality of clothes are stored in the storage chamber 200 as shown in fig. 7 (a), the warm air discharged from the circulation fan 710 and diverted by the ventilation plate 721 easily passes through between the clothes and touches the upper portion of the storage chamber 200. Therefore, the warm air is easy to contact with a plurality of clothes in all directions, and the plurality of clothes are easy to dry.

The air sucked by the circulation fan 710 contains moisture peeled from the laundry. As shown by the one-dot chain line arrow in fig. 7 (a), air blown out from the right end portion of the air circulation unit 700, which is the circulation fan 710, is received by the air scoop 280 and introduced into the circulation air duct 810 through the inlet 203. The introduced air flows through the circulation duct 810 and is discharged into the housing 200 through the outlet 204. As shown in fig. 9 (b), when the cooling fan 830 is operated, air outside the machine is taken in as cooling air from the air inlet 105, sent to the heat exchanger 820, passed through the cooling air passage 828 of the heat exchanger 820, and then discharged outside the machine from the air outlet 106.

The air flowing through the circulation air duct 810 is cooled and dehumidified by exchanging heat with the cooling air flowing through the cooling air duct 828 when passing through the plurality of heat transfer pipes 821 of the heat exchanger 820. The water discharged from the air is discharged from the water discharge port 813 of the introduction pipe 811, and finally is stored in the water discharge tank 480 of the second supply unit 400.

In this way, the air in the storage chamber 200 is dehumidified by the dehumidifying unit 800. This can suppress an increase in moisture contained in the warm air before the laundry comes into contact with the laundry, and hence drying of the laundry is facilitated.

In the circulation drying process, although the dehumidification by the dehumidification unit 800 is performed as described above, the moisture contained in the warm air is increased and the moisture is not easily peeled off from the laundry, as compared with the case of performing so-called exhaust type drying in which air is discharged from the housing chamber 200, and fresh air is taken in from the outside to the first supply duct 310 and supplied to the housing chamber 200 as warm air. Therefore, the clothes hung on the laundry stand 260 are dried gradually while being shaken by the warm air, and thus wrinkles on the clothes are easily smoothed while the clothes are dried.

When the laundry in the storage chamber 200 is dried to a certain degree after a predetermined time, the controller 902 stops the heater 330, the blowing fan 340, and the cooling fan 830, and ends the circulation drying process.

Next, the control section 902 performs an exhaust drying process (S4). In the exhaust drying process, the controller 902 operates the intake shutter 360 to switch the opening/closing plate 361 from the second closing position to the first closing position. The control unit 902 also operates the exhaust shutter plate 620 to switch the opening/closing plate 621 from the closed position to the open position. Then, the controller 902 operates the blower fan 340 and the heater 330. It should be noted that the air circulation unit 700, i.e., the circulation fan 710 and the ventilation board 721, continue to operate after the circulation drying process.

As shown by the solid arrows in fig. 5, the operation of the blower fan 340 causes the external air to be sucked into the intake duct 350 through the front surface air inlet 101 and to be sent into the first supply duct 310. Warm air is generated in the first supply duct 310 by the heating of the heater 330, and is discharged into the housing 200 from the first supply port 210. The discharged warm air and the warm air circulated in the accommodating chamber 200 by the air circulation unit 700 come into contact with the laundry, and the laundry is dried.

As shown by the solid arrows in fig. 6 (a), the air from which moisture has been removed from the clothes in the storage chamber 200 is discharged from the outlet 202. The outlet 202 is provided on the top surface of the housing chamber 200, and heated air is easily discharged. The discharged air flows through the exhaust duct 610 and passes through the ozone removing filter 630. At this time, ozone removing filter 630 becomes resistance, and the flow rate of air decreases.

During the exhaust drying process, control unit 902 operates air mixing unit 850, i.e., mixing fan 860. As shown by the broken-line arrows in fig. 6 (a), the air outside the machine is taken in from the air inlet 107 and is supplied to the exhaust duct 610 through the introduction duct 870 to a position downstream of the ozone removing filter 630. The air from outside the machine supplied into the exhaust duct 610 is mixed with the air from the storage chamber 200 passing through the ozone removing filter 630. In this case, since the flow rate of the air from the storage chamber 200 is reduced, the air from the outside of the machine is easily mixed. By mixing the air from the outside, the relative humidity of the air from the storage chamber 200 is reduced. As shown by the hollow arrows in fig. 6 (a), the air with reduced relative humidity is discharged from the exhaust port 104 to the outside of the machine.

When a predetermined time has elapsed from the start of the exhaust drying process, the controller 902 stops the operation of the heater 330, the blower fan 340, the circulation fan 710, and the ventilation board 721, and ends the circulation drying process. Thus, the drying operation is ended.

In this way, in the drying operation, a circulation drying process is performed before the exhaust drying process, and in the circulation drying process, the air in the housing chamber 200 is dehumidified by the dehumidifying unit 800. Accordingly, during the drying operation, the amount of moisture discharged from the laundry treatment apparatus 1 to the outside is reduced, and therefore, the humidity around the laundry treatment apparatus 1 is not likely to be increased.

In addition, in the drying operation, during the exhaust drying, the air outside the machine is mixed with the air flowing in the exhaust duct 610 by the air mixing unit 850, and the air having the lowered relative humidity is discharged to the outside of the machine. This makes it difficult for the discharged air to cause the influence of high-humidity air, such as dew condensation, on the wall surface of the room around the clothes treatment apparatus 1 on the periphery of the clothes treatment apparatus 1.

In the exhaust air drying process, the cooling fan 830 may be operated to dehumidify the air in the storage chamber 200 by the dehumidifying unit 800. Thereby, the moisture discharged from the laundry treating apparatus 1 to the outside can be made less.

Next, when the control unit 902 determines that the wrinkle smoothing operation is selected in step S1 (S1: wrinkle smoothing), the wrinkle smoothing operation is started, and a preparation process is executed (S5). In the preparation process, the controller 902 operates the heater 472 of the steam generator 470 in the second supply unit 400 with the pump 461 stopped. Thereby, the temperature of the body part 471 of the steam generator 470 gradually rises.

Further, in the preparation process, the control unit 902 operates the circulation fan 710 in the air circulation unit 700 and swings the ventilation board 721 in the up-down direction. As shown in fig. 7 (a), the air in the storage chamber 200 is taken into the housing 712 through the intake port 715 and blown out as wind through the discharge port 716. The blown wind is deflected by the oscillating ventilation board 721, thereby coming into contact with the laundry from various directions, and shaking the laundry. Thereby, the dust becomes easy to fall from the laundry.

When the temperature of the body part 471 of the steam generator 470 is sufficiently high, the control part 902 ends the preparation process and performs the steam process (S6). During the steam operation, the control unit 902 operates the exhaust shutter plate 620 to switch the opening/closing plate 621 from the open position to the closed position. Thereby, the exhaust duct 610 is closed. Next, the control unit 902 operates the pump 461 with the heater 472 continuously operated. As shown in fig. 3, high-temperature steam is generated in the steam generator 470 and discharged into the second supply pipe 410. The released steam rises in the second supply pipe 410, reaches the second supply port 220, and is discharged from the second supply port 220 into the housing chamber 200. The discharged steam hits the cover 240 and spreads around, some of which are discharged through the plurality of discharge holes 244, and the rest of which are discharged between the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the storage chamber 200. Thus, the steam is diffused through the cover 240 and goes to the upper laundry, contacting the laundry over a large area. The wrinkles of the laundry are smoothed by the moisture and heat of the steam.

When steam flows through second supply pipe 410, a part of the steam may condense to generate condensed water. The dew condensation water flows downward and is accumulated in the water reservoir 413, and is discharged from the discharge port 414. The drained dew condensation water is recovered to the drain tank 480 through the drain hose 490. In this way, in the present embodiment, since the water reservoir 413 for storing the dew condensation water is provided below the introduction port 412 of the second supply duct 410, the dew condensation water can be prevented from flowing from the introduction port 412 to the inside of the steam generator 470.

Further, the circulation fan 710 and the ventilation board 721 continue to operate during the steam process. The clothes are shaken by the wind blown out from the discharge port 716 and diverted by the ventilation plate 721. When the laundry is shaken in a hanging state, a force such as centrifugal force is easily applied to the laundry. Thereby, the surface of the laundry hit by the steam is easily smoothed, and thus, wrinkles of the laundry become easily flattened. Further, although the laundry is not in a dry state during preparation since it is wetted with the steam, dust attached to the laundry can be dropped by shaking the laundry.

Further, as in the case of the deodorization and sterilization operation, even when a plurality of clothes are stored in the storage chamber 200 as shown in fig. 7 (a), the wind discharged from the circulation fan 710 and deflected by the ventilation plate 721 easily passes through between the clothes and touches the upper portion of the storage chamber 200. Therefore, wind easily contacts with a plurality of clothes in all directions, the plurality of clothes are well shaken, and wrinkles of the clothes are easily flattened.

During the steam process, the exhaust duct 610 is in a closed state. Therefore, the steam in the storage chamber 200 can be prevented from being discharged to the outside of the machine through the exhaust duct 610. Further, in the exhaust duct 610, the ozone removing filter 630 is provided downstream of the exhaust shutter plate 620, and therefore, it is possible to prevent the ozone removing filter 630 from being seriously wetted by the contact of the steam with the ozone removing filter 630.

When a predetermined steam supply time has elapsed, the controller 902 stops the heater 472 and the pump 461, and the steam process is terminated.

Next, control unit 902 sequentially executes the circulation drying process and the exhaust drying process (S7, S8). The circulation drying process and the exhaust drying process are the same as those in the drying operation. The laundry wetted with the steam is dried by circulating the drying course and the exhaust drying course. In the wrinkle smoothing operation, the time for the circulation drying process and the exhaust drying process may be set to be suitable for the wrinkle smoothing operation, and may be set to be different from the time for the drying operation. Also, since the exhaust shutter 620 is already located at the closed position during the circulation drying, only the suction shutter 360 is operated, and the opening and closing plate 361 is switched from the first closed position to the second closed position.

When the exhaust drying process is finished, the control section 902 performs a ventilation process (S9). That is, the control portion 902 keeps the circulation fan 710 and the ventilation board 721 operated next to the exhaust drying process. The air inside the housing chamber 200 is sucked from the suction port 715 and blown out into the housing chamber 200 from the discharge port 716, so that the air outside the machine is sucked into the housing chamber 200 from the first supply port 210 through the suction duct 350 and the first supply duct 310 of the first supply unit 300, and the air inside the housing chamber 200 is discharged outside the machine through the discharge port 202 and the exhaust duct 610. This allows the inside of the housing chamber 200 to be ventilated, and the inner wall and the like in the housing chamber 200 are dried even if they are wetted with steam.

When a predetermined ventilation time has elapsed, the controller 902 stops the operation of the circulation fan 710 and the ventilation board 721, and ends the ventilation process. Thus, the wrinkle smoothing operation is ended.

In this way, during the wrinkle smoothing operation, the exhaust duct 610 is closed by the exhaust shutter 620 during the steam flow, and the steam cannot be discharged from the storage chamber 200 to the outside of the machine. Also, a circulation drying process in which the air inside the receiving chamber 200 is dehumidified by the dehumidifying unit 800 is performed before the exhaust drying process. Accordingly, during the wrinkle smoothing operation, the amount of moisture discharged from the laundry treatment apparatus 1 to the outside is reduced, and therefore, the humidity around the laundry treatment apparatus 1 is not likely to be increased. Furthermore, during the exhaust drying process, the air outside the machine is mixed with the air flowing through the exhaust duct 610 by the air mixing unit 850, and the air with the lowered relative humidity is discharged to the outside of the machine, so that the periphery of the laundry processing apparatus 1 is not easily affected by the high-humidity air.

In addition to the deodorizing and sterilizing operation, the drying operation, and the wrinkle smoothing operation, the laundry processing apparatus 1 may perform a drying deodorizing and sterilizing operation in which, for example, deodorizing and sterilizing are performed after drying.

In addition to the above-described exhaust type deodorization and sterilization operation, a circulation type deodorization and sterilization operation may be performed. In the circulation type deodorization and sterilization operation, the controller 902 switches the air intake shutter 360 to the second closing position and the air exhaust shutter 620 to the closing position, and operates the ozone generator 320 while circulating air between the storage chamber 200, the air intake duct 350, the blower fan 340, and the first supply duct 310, as in the circulation drying process. In this circulation type deodorization and sterilization operation, the concentration of ozone in the air increases during the air circulation, so that high-concentration ozone can be applied to the clothes, and a high deodorization and sterilization effect can be expected. In addition, in the deodorization and sterilization operation, since the exhaust duct 610 is closed by the exhaust shutter 620 and the first duct 351 and the front surface air inlet 101 are closed by the intake shutter 360 as well, the high-concentration ozone can be prevented from leaking out of the machine through the first duct 351 and the front surface air inlet 101.

Further, the exhaust shutter plate 620 may be switched to an open position where the opening/closing plate 621 is fully opened, and may be stopped at a plurality of open angle positions when the opening/closing plate 621 is opened. By changing the opening angle of the opening/closing plate 621, the opening amount of the communication port 611 of the air discharge duct 610 is changed, and the amount of air discharged from the inside of the storage chamber 200 is changed. In this case, in the exhaust drying process of the drying operation or the wrinkle smoothing operation, the opening angle of the opening/closing plate 621 gradually increases with time, and the discharge amount of air in the storage chamber 200 increases. In this way, the humidity in the housing chamber 200 is gradually reduced, and thus the wrinkle smoothing effect can be exhibited even during the exhaust drying process.

Further, a temperature sensor and a humidity sensor may be disposed in the housing chamber 200. In this case, the circulation drying process may be switched to the exhaust drying process or the exhaust drying process may be terminated according to the temperature and humidity in the storage chamber 200. Further, the opening angle of the opening/closing plate 621 may be gradually increased according to the change of the temperature and humidity in the storage chamber 200 during the exhaust drying process.

Further, during the steam process, a small amount of steam may leak from the front surface suction port 101. Therefore, in order to prevent such steam leakage, the opening/closing plate 361 of the intake shutter 360 may be switched to the second closing position during the steam process, and the outlet 351a of the first duct 351, that is, the front surface intake port 101 may be closed.

< effects of the embodiment >

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the warm air is supplied from the first supply unit 300 into the housing chamber 200 to dry the laundry, the dehumidifying unit 800 is operated, so that the air in the housing chamber 200 containing the moisture separated from the laundry can be dehumidified. This reduces the amount of moisture discharged from the laundry treatment apparatus 1 to the outside, and prevents the humidity around the laundry treatment apparatus 1 from becoming high.

Further, according to the present embodiment, by operating the air mixing unit 850 when drying laundry, air from the outside of the machine can be discharged to the outside of the machine after being mixed with air flowing in the exhaust duct 610 so that relative humidity is reduced. This makes it difficult for the discharged air to cause the influence of high-humidity air, such as dew condensation, on the wall surface of the room around the clothes treatment apparatus 1 on the periphery of the clothes treatment apparatus 1.

Further, according to the present embodiment, in the circulation drying process, the exhaust duct 610 is closed by the exhaust shutter 620, and the air that is the warm air having contacted the laundry is dehumidified by the dehumidifying unit 800 while circulating between the housing chamber 200 and the first supply unit 300 without being discharged from the housing chamber 200. This makes it possible to dry the laundry while minimizing the discharge of moist air to the outside of the machine.

Further, according to the present embodiment, during the exhaust drying process, the exhaust duct 610 is opened to actively discharge the air, which is warm air having contacted with the laundry, from the inside of the housing chamber 200, and the relative humidity of the air discharged from the housing chamber 200 is lowered by the air mixing unit 850 and then discharged to the outside of the machine. Accordingly, the air with low humidity is easily brought into contact with the clothes by exchanging the air in the housing chamber 200, and the clothes are easily dried, and the influence of the air with high humidity on the periphery of the clothes treatment apparatus 1 can be suppressed.

Further, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to perform a circulation type deodorization/sterilization operation in which the air containing ozone is circulated between the storage chamber 200 and the first supply unit 300 while the ozone is generated by the first supply unit 300. This allows ozone of high concentration to act on the clothes in the storage chamber 200, and therefore, a high deodorizing and sterilizing effect can be expected. Further, since the exhaust duct 610 and the first duct 351 are closed, it is possible to prevent the high concentration ozone from leaking to the outside of the machine.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the ozone removing filter 630 is provided in the exhaust duct 610, the air from which ozone is removed by the ozone removing filter 630 can be discharged to the outside of the machine. Further, since the ozone removing filter 630 is disposed downstream of the exhaust shutter plate 620, by closing the exhaust shutter plate 620 when steam is supplied into the housing chamber 200, the ozone removing filter 630 can be prevented from being wetted by the steam, and the ozone removing performance of the ozone removing filter 630 can be prevented from being lowered.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the air taken in from the outside by the operation of the air mixing unit 850 is supplied to the downstream of the ozone removing filter 630 in the exhaust duct 610, the air outside the machine can be mixed with the air from the housing room 200 whose flow rate is reduced by passing through the ozone removing filter 630. This makes it easier for air outside the machine to be mixed with air from the storage chamber 200, and therefore the relative humidity of air discharged outside the machine is likely to be reduced.

Further, according to the present embodiment, wrinkles of the laundry can be smoothed by supplying the steam from the second supply unit 400 into the storage chamber 200. Further, since the exhaust duct 610 is closed by the exhaust shutter 620 at this time, leakage of steam to the outside of the machine can be suppressed. This facilitates filling of the inside of the storage chamber 200 with steam, improves the wrinkle smoothing effect of the laundry, and suppresses an increase in humidity around the laundry treatment apparatus 1.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications other than those described above may be made to the embodiments of the present invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, both ozone and warm air are supplied from the first supply unit 300 into the housing chamber 200. However, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 may be provided with an ozone supply unit for supplying ozone and a warm air supply unit for supplying warm air. In this case, the air suction duct 350 may be branched at the third duct 353 to be connected to the ozone supply unit and the warm air supply unit.

In the above embodiment, the heat exchanger 820 of the dehumidifying unit 800 constitutes a part of the circulation air passage 810, and the air from the housing room 200 exchanges heat with the cooling air passing through the inside of the heat transfer pipe 821 and the outside of the heat transfer pipe 821. However, the dehumidifying unit 800 may have another structure, for example, the following structure may be adopted: the heat exchanger 820 is disposed inside the circulation air passage 810, and exchanges heat between the air from the housing 200 and the liquid or gas refrigerant passing through the outside of the heat transfer pipe 821 and the inside of the heat transfer pipe 821.

Further, although the air circulation unit 700 circulates air between the inside of the housing chamber 200 and the circulation air passage 810 in the above embodiment, a circulation fan may be disposed in the circulation air passage 810 without using the air circulation unit 700.

Further, in the above embodiment, the discharge port 202 is provided on the top surface of the housing chamber 200. However, the discharge port 202 may be provided at another position, for example, an upper portion of the rear surface of the housing chamber 200.

Further, in the above embodiment, the suction port 864 of the mixing fan 860 is connected to the suction port 107 of the casing 100. However, the suction port 864 of the mixing fan 860 may be open to the inside of the casing 100 without being connected to the suction port 107. In this case, air outside the apparatus is taken into the casing 100 through the air inlet 107 by the operation of the mixing fan 860, and air is taken into the mixing fan 860 from the casing 100. In this case, the air supplied to the exhaust duct 610 is also referred to as air outside the machine.

Further, although the air inlet 107 is provided in the rear surface of the housing 100 in the above embodiment, it may be provided in another surface of the housing 100, for example, any one of the left and right side surfaces.

Further, in the above embodiment, air mixing unit 850 is configured such that mixing fan 860 is connected to exhaust duct 610 through introduction duct 870. However, the air mixing unit 850 may be configured such that the discharge port 865 of the mixing fan 860 is directly connected to the exhaust duct 610. In this case, the suction port 864 of the mixing fan 860 may be directly connected to the suction port 107, may be connected to the suction port 107 via a duct, or may be open to the inside of the casing 100. In addition, the air mixing unit 850 may have any structure as long as it can mix air outside the machine with air flowing in the exhaust duct 610.

Further, in the above embodiment, the ozone removing filter 630 is an activated carbon/catalyst filter, but other filters having ozone removing performance such as an activated carbon filter may be used.

Further, in the above embodiment, the clothes treating apparatus 1 performs the deodorization and sterilization operation. However, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 may not perform the deodorization and sterilization operation, and the ozone generator 320 may not be disposed in the first supply unit 300. In this case, the ozone removing filter 630 is removed from the exhaust unit 600.

Further, in the above embodiment, the steam generator 470 of the second supply unit 400 has the following structure: the water sent from the pump 461 falls to the bottom surface of the high-temperature steam generation chamber 473 and evaporates, thereby generating steam. However, the steam generator 470 is not limited to the above configuration, and may be configured to generate steam by heating a water tank storing water to boil the water, for example.

Further, in the above embodiment, the air circulation unit 700 is disposed at the bottom of the housing chamber 200 and inside the housing chamber 200. However, the air circulation unit 700 may be disposed at the bottom of the housing chamber 200 and outside the housing chamber 200. In this case, an intake port for taking in air to the circulation fan 710 and an outlet port for blowing out air into the housing chamber 200 are provided in a wall surface of the housing chamber 200. The air circulation unit 700 may be disposed at a portion other than the bottom of the housing chamber 200 and may be disposed at any one of the inner and outer sides of the housing chamber 200.

Further, although the cross-flow fan is used as the circulation fan 710 in the above embodiment, a fan other than the cross-flow fan such as a sirocco fan (sirocco fan) may be used.

Further, in the above embodiment, the exhaust shutter 620 is used as an opening/closing portion for opening/closing the exhaust duct 610. However, other opening/closing units may be used, such as a flap mechanism including a flap (shutter) that moves up and down in the exhaust duct 610 and a driving unit that drives the flap.

Further, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 may not include the second supply unit 400, and may not perform the wrinkle smoothing operation. Further, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 may not include the air circulation unit 700.

In addition, the embodiment of the present invention can be modified in various ways as appropriate within the scope of the technical idea shown in the claims.

Claims (5)

1. A clothes treatment device is characterized by comprising:

   a storage chamber configured in the box body for storing clothes;

   a warm air supply unit configured to supply warm air into the storage chamber;

   a dehumidification section for dehumidifying air in the accommodation chamber;

   an outlet for discharging air in the accommodating chamber;

   an exhaust duct that guides air discharged from the discharge port to an outside of the case; and

   and an air mixing part which takes in air outside the box body and mixes the air with air flowing in the exhaust duct.
2. The laundry processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

   a first opening/closing unit that opens and closes the exhaust duct;

   a first air intake path which takes in air outside the case; and

   a second air suction passage for sucking air in the accommodation chamber,

   in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening and closing portion,

   the warm air supply unit generates warm air from air taken into the storage chamber of the second air intake path and supplies the warm air into the storage chamber, and the dehumidification unit dehumidifies the air in the storage chamber,

   in a state where the exhaust duct is opened by the first opening and closing portion,

   the warm air supply unit generates warm air from air outside the casing taken into the first air intake path and supplies the warm air into the housing chamber, and the air mixing unit supplies air outside the casing into the exhaust duct.
3. The laundry processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

   an ozone supply unit configured to supply air containing ozone into the housing chamber; and

   a second opening/closing part for opening/closing the first air suction passage,

   the ozone supply unit generates ozone from air taken into the storage chamber of the second air intake path and supplies air containing the ozone into the storage chamber in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing unit and the first air intake path is closed by the second opening/closing unit.
4. The laundry processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:

   an ozone removing unit that removes ozone contained in air flowing in the exhaust duct,

   the air mixing unit supplies air taken in from outside the casing to a downstream side of the ozone removing unit in the exhaust duct.
5. The laundry processing apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising:

   a steam supply part for supplying steam into the accommodating chamber,

   the steam supply unit supplies steam into the accommodating chamber in a state where the exhaust duct is closed by the first opening/closing unit.

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