CN115516159A

CN115516159A - Method and control unit for operating a cleaning device for textile fabric pretreatment and main treatment, and cleaning device

Info

Publication number: CN115516159A
Application number: CN202180033433.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 迪尔克·希尔丁; 赖纳·比克; 马格努斯·科滕詹; 马库斯·德鲁格; 史蒂芬·拉斯纳; 本尼迪克·费希特尔; 马赛尔·齐尔克
Original assignee: Miele und Cie KG
Current assignee: Miele und Cie KG
Priority date: 2020-03-30
Filing date: 2021-03-22
Publication date: 2022-12-23
Also published as: KR20220152337A; EP4127299A1; WO2021197882A1; US20230160124A1; DE102020108682A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for operating a cleaning device (100) for pre-treatment and main treatment of textiles (102) with a rotatable, rib-free drum (106). The method includes the step of providing a feed signal for feeding cleaning liquid into the soapy water container (104) until a predetermined initial fill level is reached, which is indicative of the level of cleaning liquid between the drum shell and the honeycomb body. The soaking action causes the textile (102) to be pre-treated to be soaked with the cleaning liquid. The method comprises the step of reading in a filling level signal indicative of a filling level of the cleaning liquid. The method comprises the step of providing a further feeding signal for feeding cleaning liquid into the soapy water container (104) until a target filling level is reached, the target filling level representing a level of cleaning liquid above a predetermined initial filling level. The movement signal causes a shaking rhythm of the drum (106) for the pretreatment of the textile (102) to be pretreated. After pretreatment, the drum door (116) is unlocked to allow additional textile (102) to be added for main treatment of the textile (102).

Description

Method and control unit for operating a cleaning device for textile fabric pretreatment and main treatment, and cleaning device

Technical Field

The invention relates to a method and a control unit for operating a cleaning device for textile fabric pretreatment and main treatment, and to a cleaning device.

Background

EP2309048A1 describes a drum for a washing machine having at least one engagement rib connected to the drum shell.

The problem addressed by the method provided herein is to create an improved method and an improved control unit for operating a cleaning device for textile pre-treatment and main treatment, and an improved cleaning device.

According to the invention, this problem is solved by a method and a control unit for operating a cleaning device for textile fabric pretreatment and main treatment, and a cleaning device having the features of the main claim. Advantageous embodiments and developments of the invention can be found in the following appended claims.

The invention makes it possible to achieve the advantage of pretreating particularly stubborn stains, which cannot be removed using standard cleaning procedures or can only be removed laboriously using standard cleaning procedures, for example.

Disclosure of Invention

To this end, a method for operating a cleaning device for textile pre-treatment and main treatment is provided. The cleaning device has a rotatable rib-free drum for receiving textile fabrics, which can be closed using a drum door and has a drum housing and at least one honeycomb body. The method includes the step of providing a feed signal to an interface of a feed unit of the cleaning device, wherein the feed signal causes cleaning liquid to be fed into a soapy water reservoir of the cleaning device until a predetermined initial fill level is reached, which is indicative of a level of the cleaning liquid between the drum shell and an upper edge of the honeycomb body. In the execution step, a soaking action is performed in order to soak the textile to be pretreated with a cleaning liquid. The method further comprises the step of reading in a filling level signal indicative of the filling level of the cleaning liquid. The method optionally includes repeating the steps of providing the feed signal and performing the act of saturating until a fill level indicated by the fill level signal indicates that the cleaning liquid is saturating the textile to be pretreated. In the providing step, a further feed signal is provided to an interface of the feed unit, wherein the further feed signal causes the cleaning liquid to be fed into the soapy water container until a target filling level is reached, the target filling level representing a level of the cleaning liquid above a predetermined initial filling level, at which target filling level the textile to be pre-treated can be made to slide within the drum. Furthermore, the method comprises the step of providing a movement signal to an interface of a drive of the cleaning device, which causes a shaking rhythm of the drum for pretreating the textiles to be pretreated. In the unlocking step, the drum door is unlocked after pre-treating the textile to be treated to allow additional textile to be added for main treatment of the textile.

For example, the method may be performed in a commercially available cleaning device, which may be implemented as a washing machine, for example. The pre-treatment may also be referred to as a wash plate function and the main treatment may be referred to as a normal wash program. The drum may be referred to as a washing drum or a laundry drum and may rotate in two opposite directions. For example, a drum door may be provided at the front of the cleaning apparatus to facilitate easy access by a user, and thus simplify the loading process for the user. The drum shell may be formed as a circumferential sidewall of the drum. The initial fill level may be selected in such a way that: when the honeycomb is oriented vertically downward, the cavities formed by the honeycomb are not completely filled with cleaning solution. Therefore, the inside of the drum may be slightly wetted at the initial water filling level. For example, the honeycomb body can be embodied as a surface structure of a drum shell, which projects into the interior of the drum. "Rib-free" is understood to mean that the drum has no ribs on the inside extending between the drum base and the drum opening (for example parallel to the axis of rotation of the drum). A honeycomb body is understood to mean a bulge-like height on the interior of the drum. The honeycomb body may be pyramidal or conical. The honeycomb body may have a circular or regular polygonal shape as its base. The honeycomb may also be referred to as a structural element, a bump, or a micro-wicking element. For example, if the drum does not contain any geometry protruding from the surface where the radius of the drum is reduced by more than 10%, a non-ribbed drum is used. The feed unit may be formed as a valve, for example. The cleaning liquid may be water, for example, which may additionally or alternatively be mixed with a detergent. The saturation action may include, for example, waiting, slightly rotating, or cycling. When the textile is not sufficiently saturated, then repeated steps may be performed. In this case, the textile may absorb the cleaning liquid such that the initial fill level is below the target. The drive may comprise an electric motor and cause the drum to perform a movement. When the target fill level is reached, the drum may be moved, for example, to simulate wash plate function. The shaking rhythm advantageously describes a back and forth movement of the drum in two opposite directions. Advantageously, the unlocking step represents the end of the pre-treatment, so that the user can advantageously add more textiles to the cleaning device. For example, a main wash cycle may then be performed.

Advantageously, the pretreatment of the individual dyed textiles can be carried out automatically by the cleaning device in the form of a pretreatment stage, which means that the user can save a considerable amount of time compared to a manual operation. Thus, for example, the pretreatment may be given to a washing machine for completion. In addition, various process parameters can be intelligently coordinated with the mechanical pretreatment while performing precise positioning of the dyed textile in the drum. Such method parameters relate to, for example, the level of the cleaning liquid or the rotational characteristics of the drum. Advantageously, this can be performed in connection with a washing drum without laundry entrainment elements (e.g. without ribs). By selecting various options, process engineering setting can be performed; for example, the wash rhythm may be adjusted. There are different washing rhythms with different washing rotation speeds, geometry of the rotation speed (e.g. rectangular or ramp) and rotation frequency. The washing rhythm is intelligently adapted to the increased mechanical requirements in the pretreatment process, for example, depending on the degree of soiling or soiling, in combination with other process parameters, such as water level, circulation or soaking, allow an optimal pretreatment in the sense of the function of the wash plate. Especially in the case of stains requiring mechanical removal, where the mechanism is referred to as the washing rhythm, the pretreatment can ensure complete removal of the stain in the pretreatment stage (stain, pre-wash, soak) since the targeted mechanical treatment can be performed on the coloured textile area. This allows targeted mechanical treatment of the dyed textile area. Advantageously, the pretreatment process does not affect the entire batch of laundry, as textiles that do not require pretreatment can be added after pretreatment and are therefore not stressed by the pretreatment. This avoids that even slightly soiled textiles are subjected to long washing times and to high mechanical stresses.

According to one embodiment, the step of performing a soaking action may comprise the step of providing an interface of a drive of the cleaning device with a further motion signal, wherein the further motion signal may cause a rotational motion of the drum in a shaking rhythm in order to soak the textile fabric to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid. For example, the further motion signal may be provided when the initial fill level has been reached. For example, the shaking rhythm may represent a back and forth movement of the drum in two opposite directions, wherein the rotation rate may be kept low. Advantageously, this allows the textile to move in the drum, so that the time for soaking the textile may be reduced. The rotational movement of the drum may then be stopped.

According to one embodiment, the step of performing a soaking action may comprise the step of providing a circulation signal to an interface of a circulation device of the cleaning apparatus, wherein the circulation signal may cause a circulation of the cleaning liquid for soaking the textile to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid. The circulation device may comprise a pump, for example, by which cleaning liquid may be delivered from the soapy water container to the textiles. The program duration of the pre-treatment can advantageously be shortened, since the saturation can be reached very quickly.

According to one embodiment, in the step of providing the motion signal, the shaking rhythm may define a continuous rotational motion of the drum with an increasing rotational speed without a full rotation of the drum until a final rotational speed of the shaking rhythm is reached. Advantageously, tough soil on textiles can also be removed in this way.

According to one embodiment, the method may comprise the step of providing a stop signal for ending the rotational movement of the drum when the final rotational speed is reached. Advantageously, this may prevent, for example, the textile fabric from sticking too tightly to the drum shell.

According to one embodiment, in the step of providing a motion signal, the motion signal may cause a shaking rhythm having a frequency between 0.1Hz and 0.3 Hz. Advantageously, a slight frictional movement of the textiles on the drum shell can be carried out in this way, so that, for example, stains are treated in a manner similar to a washing board treatment.

In the step of providing a movement signal, according to one embodiment, the movement signal may cause a continuous rotational movement with a rotational speed increase between 4rpm and 6 rpm. According to one embodiment, in the step of providing a motion signal, the final rotation speed may be between 50rpm and 70 rpm. Advantageously, this allows a particularly adequate pretreatment to be carried out.

According to an embodiment, the method may comprise the step of providing a heating signal to an interface of the heating device of the cleaning apparatus during the step of providing the movement signal, wherein the heating signal may cause the cleaning liquid to warm up. This may improve the cleaning effect.

Furthermore, the method may comprise the step of reading in a locking signal after the unlocking step, and the step of providing a subsequent movement signal to an interface of a drive of the cleaning device if the locking signal indicates a locked state of the drum door. In this case, the subsequent movement signal can cause a rotary movement of the drum in the rhythm of the main treatment for carrying out the main treatment of the textile. The main treatment may be, for example, a standard washing procedure for cleaning the device, which procedure may advantageously be performed after the pretreatment. Between the pre-treatment and the main treatment, the user may advantageously have the opportunity to add further textile, for example, which has a lower degree of contamination than the textile to be pre-treated. Advantageously, for example, the drum door can be locked after refilling, so that, for example, no cleaning liquid escapes to the outside of the cleaning device during the main treatment.

According to one embodiment, the main processing rhythm may include a shaking rhythm of the drum. The shaking rhythm can advantageously be used for the rotation program.

The method provided herein also creates a control unit designed to carry out, control or carry out the steps of the variants of the method provided herein in the respective device. The problem solved by the invention can also be solved quickly and efficiently in the form of a device by means of this embodiment variant of the invention.

The control unit can be designed to read in the input signal and to use the input signal to determine and provide the output signal. For example, the input signal may represent a sensor signal read in via an input interface of the control unit. The output signal may represent a control signal or a data signal that may be provided at an output interface of the control unit. The control unit may be designed to determine the output signal using a processing specification implemented in hardware or software. For example, to this end, the control unit may comprise logic circuits, integrated circuits or software modules and may be implemented as or consist of discrete components.

A computer program product or a computer program having a program code which can be stored on a machine-readable carrier or storage medium such as a semiconductor memory, a hard disk memory or an optical memory is also advantageous. The program product or program may be used to execute, implement and/or control the steps of the method according to one of the above-described embodiments, if the program product or program is executed on a computer or control unit.

Furthermore, a cleaning device for cleaning textiles is proposed, which has a soapy water container for collecting cleaning liquid and a rotatable, rib-free drum arranged in the soapy water container, the drum comprising a drum housing and a plurality of honeycomb bodies. The drum is shaped to receive the textile in the receiving space. Furthermore, the cleaning device has a feed unit for feeding cleaning liquid into the drum, a drive for causing the drum to perform a rotational movement, and the control unit in the aforementioned variant.

The cleaning device may be implemented, for example, as a household appliance in the form of a standard washing machine or a commercial or professional appliance.

According to one embodiment, the interior of the drum shell may be smooth except for the plurality of honeycomb bodies. Advantageously, this results in a gentler way of cleaning the textile.

Drawings

Embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawings in a purely schematic manner and will be described in more detail below. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a cleaning device according to one embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a cylinder according to one embodiment of a cleaning device;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a control unit for a cleaning device according to one embodiment; and

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a method for operating a cleaning device for pre-treatment and main treatment of textiles according to one embodiment.

Detailed Description

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a cleaning device 100 according to one embodiment. According to this embodiment, the cleaning apparatus 100 is implemented as a washing machine. The cleaning device 100 is designed to clean textiles 102 and has a soap water container 104 for collecting cleaning liquid. The cleaning device 100 also has a rotatable, non-ribbed drum 106 disposed in the soapy water container 104 and having a drum shell and a plurality of honeycomb bodies, as described in more detail in one of the following figures. The drum 106 is shaped to receive the textile 102 in the receiving space 108. The cleaning device 100 has a drive 110 which is designed to cause a rotational movement of the cylinder 106. According to this embodiment, the control unit 112 of the cleaning device 100 is designed to control the feed unit 114 and the drive 110 of the cleaning device and to perform the method of operating the cleaning device 100 for the pre-treatment and the main treatment of textiles 102. The feeding unit 114 is designed to feed cleaning liquid to the soapy water container 104. According to this embodiment, the interior of the drum shell of the drum 106 is smooth except for the plurality of honeycomb bodies, as described in more detail in one of the following figures. According to this embodiment, the cleaning device 100 also has a roller door 116, which is designed to close the receiving space 108 in preparation for operation.

According to this embodiment, the drum 106 allows for pre-treatment of stain-dyed textiles using a washing mechanism that simulates a washing plate-like cleaning process. This is achieved by an intelligent interaction of the filling level of the cleaning liquid and the rotational speed of the drum 106, although no ribs, also called laundry entrainment elements, are present in the drum 106. By means of the intelligent addition function of the cleaning device, it is possible to add a remaining batch of laundry after the pretreatment, so that this batch is not additionally subjected to the mechanical stress of the pretreatment.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the roller 106 according to one embodiment of the cleaning device. For example, the cylinder 106 may correspond to the cylinder 106 described in fig. 1 and may therefore be used in a cleaning device as described in fig. 1. According to this exemplary embodiment, the drum 106 has a drum housing 200, the interior 202 of which is designed to be smooth, with the exception of a plurality of honeycomb bodies 204. According to this embodiment, the honeycomb body 204 is approximately hexagonal and has a curved shape in the direction of the receiving space 108. According to this embodiment, another honeycomb structure is disposed about honeycomb body 204. According to one exemplary embodiment, the honeycomb body 204 can only optionally have at least one through-opening which is designed, for example, to allow cleaning liquid to pass through.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram of the control unit 112 for the cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment. The control unit 112 may be used for example for a cleaning device as described in fig. 1 and is designed for controlling a cylinder as described in fig. 2, for example. The control unit 112 is also designed to perform the method of operating the cleaning device for the pre-treatment and main treatment of textiles. For this purpose, the control unit 112 has a read-in unit 300 and a provision unit 302.

The read-in unit 300 is designed to read in a filling level signal 304 representing the filling level of the cleaning liquid in the soapy water container. According to this embodiment, the fill level signal 304 is provided by a fill level sensor 306, which is designed to detect the fill level, for example by means of light measurements. According to this embodiment, the read-in unit 300 is also designed to read in a lock signal 308 indicating the locked state of the drum door 116.

The providing unit 302 is designed to provide a feed signal 310 to an interface of the feed unit 114 of the cleaning apparatus. According to this embodiment, the feed signal 310 causes cleaning liquid to be fed into the soapy water reservoir of the cleaning device until a predetermined initial fill level is reached, which is indicative of the level of cleaning liquid located between the drum shell and the honeycomb body. For example, the initial fill level is selected in such a way that: when the drum is rotated in such a way that the honeycomb body is at the lowest point of the drum, the cavities formed by the honeycomb are not completely filled with cleaning liquid. In this case, the upper edge of the lower honeycomb body, i.e. the part of the lower honeycomb body which projects the deepest into the interior of the drum, projects from the cleaning liquid. Thus, when the cleaning liquid reaches the initial fill level, the textiles in the drum are in contact with the cleaning liquid. The providing unit 302 is further designed to provide a further feed signal 314 to the interface of the feeding unit 114 when the textile is saturated with the cleaning liquid. Another feed signal 314 causes additional cleaning liquid to be provided to the soapy water container until a target fill level is reached, which represents a level of cleaning liquid above a predetermined initial fill level.

Furthermore, the provision unit 302 provides a movement signal 316 to the interface of the drive 110 of the cleaning device, which signal causes a shaking rhythm of the drum for the pretreatment of the textiles to be pretreated. Furthermore, the provision unit 302 is designed to provide an unlocking signal 320 for unlocking the drum door after the pre-treatment of the textile to be pre-treated, whereby the user can optionally add further textiles for the main treatment of the textile. The fact that a textile fabric has been added is identified, for example, by a lock signal 308 indicating the locked state of the drum door 116. According to one embodiment, the provision unit 302 is designed to provide, after optional addition of further textiles, a subsequent movement signal 309 to an interface of the drive 110 of the cleaning device, which causes the drum to be moved in rotation in a main treatment rhythm to perform a main treatment of the textiles. Only optionally, the providing unit 302 is designed to provide a stop signal 322 to end the rotational movement of the drum when the final rotational speed is reached.

In order to accelerate the impregnation of the textiles, the provision unit 302 is optionally designed to provide a further movement signal 323, wherein according to this embodiment the signal causes the drum to rotate in a shaking rhythm in order to impregnate the textiles to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid. Additionally or alternatively, the provision unit is designed to provide a circulation signal 328 at an interface of the circulation device 330, the circulation signal 328 circulating a cleaning liquid to saturate the textiles to be pretreated. To this end, for example, the circulation device 330 includes a pump.

Furthermore, the provision unit 302 is optionally designed to provide a heating signal 324 to an interface of a heating device 326 of the cleaning apparatus. According to this embodiment, the heating signal 324 causes the cleaning liquid to be heated.

To perform the pretreatment, according to one embodiment, using the feed signal 310, a cleaning liquid is first filled until the textile to be pretreated is saturated. This process may be accelerated by providing another motion signal 323 to slightly rotate the drum and/or by a cycle signal 328. When saturation is reached, another feed signal 314 is used to increase the level of cleaning solution in the soapy water container until the target fill level is reached. The target fill level may be predetermined or adjusted, for example, according to the amount of one or more textiles to be pretreated. The motion signal 316 is then used to cause the drum to perform a shaking rhythm, which allows for pre-processing using clear mechanical components. The target fill level is selected in a manner to ensure that the textiles in the drum can slide along the drum shell as the drum rotates. According to one embodiment, the target fill level is selected in a manner that prevents the textile from floating. For optimum cleaning it is advantageous if the textile to be pretreated is placed in a drum with the side to be pretreated pointing downwards. After the drum stops, the drum door may be unlocked using an unlock signal 320. This provides the user with the opportunity to place additional textiles in the drum. The textile may then be subjected to a main treatment. The level of the cleaning liquid can be adjusted for this purpose, if necessary. For the main process, the subsequent motion signal can be used to rotate the drum in a main process rhythm.

In other words, the method provided herein creates an opportunity to allow wash plate functionality in a ribless drum (also referred to as a wash drum) as a pre-treatment method. It makes sense to place the textile with the stains to be treated in a cleaning device (also called washing machine) in such a way that the stains are in contact with the drum shell. According to a specific embodiment, the level of the cleaning liquid and the characteristics of the rotating movement of the drum during the pretreatment are chosen in such a way that the textiles do not rotate during the pretreatment.

With the method provided herein, heavily dyed textiles are pretreated with mechanical components that are significantly improved over previous cases. One prerequisite for this is that the textile to be treated is not turned over, which is possible with a rib-free drum. The textile to be pretreated is ideally prepared for the subsequent washing process (herein referred to as main treatment) by intelligent interaction between the drum motion, soaking, fill level, circulation, heating method and/or structural elements (here referred to as honeycomb and alternatively also royal honeycomb).

This upstream process, referred to herein as pre-treatment, is comparable to the "wash plate principle" known from earlier washes. The textile to be treated is placed in the drum with the dyeing side down. At the beginning of the pretreatment, the initial fill level is adjusted such that it is between the drum shell and the upper edge of the honeycomb structural element. The textile must be 100% saturated. According to this embodiment, this state is achieved by a minimum shaking movement of the drum, wherein the textile fabric is adsorbed and/or the cycle is activated in a targeted manner. For optimal pre-treatment, after adjusting the saturation, the water level (also called liquid level) is adjusted between the textiles and the drum shell, which allows the textiles to slip. The saturation of the textiles and the precisely adjusted water level allow a "wash board function", in which a special rhythm is used to produce the wash board function. For this purpose, according to this embodiment, the washing rhythm (also referred to herein as shaking rhythm) is parameterized such that the washing drum does not complete a complete rotation. The shaking rhythm is also defined by the frequency (e.g. 0.2 Hz), the final rotation speed (e.g. maximum 60 rpm) and the increase in rotation speed per cycle (e.g. 5 rpm). After reaching the final rotational speed, the insertion pauses, also called drum stops. This allows for a standardization by which the cleaning liquid is adjusted again to the filling level, in this case the target filling level, which makes it possible to repeat the process as desired.

In conclusion, with this washing rhythm, it is even possible to pretreat stubborn stains. The wash plate function is a common cleaning method that corresponds to the original wash plate principle and suggests the addition of mechanical washing parts. The treatment is performed, for example, with or without heating, depending on the change in the stain.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a method 400 of operating a cleaning apparatus for textile pre-treatment and main treatment according to one embodiment. For example, the method 400 may be performed by a control unit as described in fig. 3. The control unit may be used in a cleaning device having a ribless drum, as described in fig. 1.

The method 400 includes a step 402 of providing a feed signal to an interface of a feed unit of the cleaning device, wherein the feed signal feeds cleaning liquid into a soapy water reservoir of the cleaning device until a predetermined initial fill level is reached, which is indicative of a level of cleaning liquid located between the drum shell and the honeycomb body.

Furthermore, the method 400 comprises a step 404 of performing a soaking action in order to soak the textile to be pre-treated with the cleaning liquid. In the simplest case, the soaking action represents only a waiting time, which allows the cleaning liquid to be absorbed by the at least one textile to be pretreated. In a reading step 406, a fill level signal is read, which represents the fill level of the cleaning liquid. The steps of providing a feed signal 402 and performing a soaking action 404 are optionally repeated until the fill level signal indicates a fill level of cleaning liquid, which indicates soaking of the textiles to be pretreated.

After the soaking has taken place, in a providing step 408 a further feeding signal is provided to an interface of a feeding unit of the cleaning device, wherein the further feeding signal causes the cleaning liquid to be fed into the soap-water container of the cleaning device until a target filling level is reached, which target filling level represents a level of the cleaning liquid which is higher than a predetermined initial filling level, and allows the at least one textile fabric to be pre-treated to slide inside the drum. To this end, the method 400 comprises a step 410 of providing a movement signal to an interface of a drive of the cleaning device, which causes a shaking rhythm of a drum for pretreating the textiles to be pretreated.

According to one embodiment, the shaking rhythm defines a continuous rotational movement of the drum with an increasing rotational speed, but without a full rotation of the drum. The rotation with opposite rotation directions is repeated alternately until the final rotation speed of the shaking rhythm is reached. According to this embodiment, the motion signal causes a shaking rhythm with a frequency between 0.1Hz and 0.3Hz and a continuous rotational motion with a rotational speed increase between 4rpm and 6 rpm. For example, the final rotational speed is between 50rpm and 70 rpm.

In an unlocking step 412, after the pretreatment, the drum door is unlocked to allow the addition of further textiles for the main treatment: both at least one pre-treated textile and optionally an added textile. It is also possible to check the effect of the pre-processing and, if necessary, to start the pre-processing again before the main processing is performed.

According to one embodiment, the step 404 of performing a soaking action comprises the step of providing an interface of a drive of the cleaning device with a further motion signal causing a rotational motion of the drum in a shaking rhythm for soaking the textile fabric to be pre-treated with the cleaning liquid. Alternatively or additionally, the step 404 of performing a soaking action comprises the step of providing a cycling signal at an interface of the cycling apparatus. According to this embodiment, the circulation signal circulates the cleaning liquid in order to saturate the textile to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid.

The method 400 optionally includes a step 414 of outputting a heating signal to an interface of a heating device of the cleaning apparatus. According to this embodiment, the heating signal causes the cleaning liquid to be heated.

According to this embodiment, the method 400 further optionally comprises step 416: a stop signal is provided to end the rotational movement of the drum when the final rotational speed is reached.

The method 400 further comprises a step 418 of reading in a lock signal after the unlocking step 412 and further comprises a step 420 of providing a subsequent movement signal to an interface of a drive of the cleaning device if the lock signal indicates a locked state of the drum door, wherein the subsequent movement signal causes a rotational movement of the drum in a rhythm of the main treatment to cause the main treatment of the textile fabric. According to this embodiment, the main processing rhythm includes a shaking rhythm of the drum.

Claims

1. A method (400) of operating a cleaning device (100) for the pre-treatment and the main treatment of textile fabrics (102), the cleaning device (100) having a rotatable, rib-free drum (106) for accommodating the textile fabrics (102), wherein the drum (106) with a drum door (116) is closable and has a drum housing (200) and at least one honeycomb body (204), the method (400) comprising the steps of:

providing (402) a feed signal (310) to an interface of a feed unit (114) of the cleaning device (100), wherein the feed signal (310) causes a cleaning liquid to be supplied into a soapy water container (104) of the cleaning device (100) until a predetermined initial fill level is reached, which represents a level of the cleaning liquid between the drum shell (200) and an upper edge of the honeycomb body (204);

performing (404) a soaking action in order to soak at least one textile (102) to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid;

reading in (406) a fill level signal (304), wherein the fill level signal (304) represents a fill level of the cleaning liquid;

-providing (408) a further feeding signal (314) to an interface of the feeding unit (114) of the cleaning device (100), wherein the further feeding signal (314) causes the cleaning liquid to be fed into the soapy water container (104) of the cleaning device (100) until a target filling level is reached, the target filling level representing a level of cleaning liquid above the predetermined initial filling level and allowing the textiles to be pre-treated to slide inside the drum (106);

providing (410) a motion signal (316) to an interface of a drive (110) of the cleaning device (100) causing a shaking rhythm of the drum (106) for pretreating the textile (102) to be pretreated; and

unlocking (412) a drum door (116) after pre-treating the textile (102) to be pre-treated to allow addition of additional textile (102) for main treatment of the textile (102).

2. The method (400) according to claim 1, wherein the step (404) of performing the soaking action comprises the step of providing a further motion signal (323) to an interface of a drive (110) of the cleaning device (100), wherein the further motion signal (323) causes the drum (106) to perform a rotational motion in a shaking rhythm in order to soak the textile fabric (102) to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid.

3. The method (400) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the step (404) of performing the soaking action comprises the step of providing a circulation signal (328) to an interface of a circulation device (330) of the cleaning apparatus (100), wherein the circulation signal (328) circulates the cleaning liquid in order to soak the textile (102) to be pretreated with the cleaning liquid.

4. The method (400) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein, in the step (410) of providing the motion signal (316), the shaking rhythm defines a continuous rotational motion of the drum (106) with an increasing rotational speed without a full rotation of the drum (106) until a final rotational speed of the shaking rhythm is reached.

5. The method (400) of claim 4, comprising the step of providing a stop signal (322) (416) to stop the rotational movement of the drum (106) when the final rotational speed is reached.

6. The method (400) according to claim 4 or 5, wherein, in the step (410) of providing the motion signal (316), the motion signal (316) causes a shaking rhythm with a frequency between 0.1Hz and 0.3 Hz.

7. The method (400) according to any of claims 4 to 6, wherein, in the step (410) of providing the motion signal (316), the motion signal (316) causes a continuous rotational motion with a rotational speed increase between 4rpm and 6 rpm.

8. The method (400) according to any of claims 4 to 7, wherein, in the step (410) of providing the motion signal (316), the final rotational speed is between 50rpm and 70 rpm.

9. The method (400) according to any of the preceding claims, comprising the step (414) of providing a heating signal (324) to an interface of a heating device (326) of the cleaning apparatus (100) during the step (410) of providing the motion signal (316), wherein the heating signal (324) heats the cleaning liquid.

10. The method (400) according to any of the preceding claims, comprising a step (418) of reading in a locking signal (308) after the unlocking step (412), and a step (420) of providing a subsequent motion signal (309) to an interface of the driver (110) of the cleaning device (100), wherein the subsequent motion signal (309) causes a rotational motion of the drum (106) in a main process rhythm for causing a main process of the textile fabric (102).

11. The method (400) of claim 10, wherein the master processing cadence includes the shaking cadence of the drum.

12. A control unit (112) designed to perform the steps (402, 404, 406, 408, 410, 412) of the method (400) according to any one of the preceding claims in a respective unit (300, 302).

13. A computer program product comprising program code for performing the method (400) according to any one of claims 1 to 11 when the computer program product is executed on the control unit (112) according to claim 12.

14. A cleaning device (100) for cleaning a textile fabric (102), having the following features:

a soapy water container (104) for collecting cleaning liquid;

a rotatable ribless drum (106) arranged in the soapy water container (104) with a drum housing (200) and a plurality of honeycomb bodies (204), wherein the drum (106) is shaped such that the textile fabric (102) is received in a receiving space (108);

a feed unit (114) for supplying the cleaning liquid into the drum (106);

a drive (110) for causing the drum (106) to perform a rotational movement; and

the control unit (112) of claim 12.

15. The cleaning device (100) according to claim 14, wherein the interior (202) of the drum shell (200) is smooth except for a plurality of honeycomb bodies (204).