CN115874424A - Portable clothes drying device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a portable clothes drying device, which comprises a base unit and an air outlet unit; the arrangement of the base unit enables the portable clothes drying device to be arranged in various using spaces and provides the functions of heating, drying, disinfecting and the like for the portable clothes drying device; the air outlet unit can be arranged corresponding to various clothes with different geometric shapes.

Description

Portable clothes drying device

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to the field of drying devices, and more particularly to a portable clothes drying device.

Background

The drying device is one of the most important household electrical appliances in modern society, and is not only indispensable in relatively humid climatic environments, but also highly demanded in some high-altitude areas where snow may be produced in winter. For example, people often wear heavy clothes such as coats, gloves and snow boots when going out in snowy areas, but the clothes are easily stained with snow during activities, or snow accumulated in front of the windows of the vehicle is removed by hands before driving, so that the clothes are always wet when going out. In order to prevent the clothes from losing the heat preservation function due to the humidity or breeding bacteria and mould, the damp clothes need to be dried repeatedly. However, most known drying devices are not easily portable and are not configured to dry clothes having complex shapes, such as gloves or snow boots.

Drying devices known in the art are quite versatile, among which are few modified products. For example, the chinese patent CN111426164a discloses a deodorizing dryer, which has a support and a plurality of support rods distributed on the support, so as to achieve the purpose of drying a plurality of boxing gloves simultaneously. However, the above-mentioned deodorizing dryer is too limited in the kinds of clothes, and is inconvenient to carry.

Disclosure of Invention

This summary is provided to provide a simplified summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding to the reader. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of the embodiments nor delineate the scope of the disclosure.

In view of the foregoing needs and limitations, the present disclosure is directed to a drying device that is easy to carry and is suitable for various kinds of clothes. The drying device of the invention can not only be suitable for various cup holders for vehicles, but also the air inlet channel can not be shielded by the wall surface of the cup holder. Besides the vehicle, the drying device is more convenient to carry to various places (such as offices, camping places, various spaces in homes and the like) for use, and is not easy to topple over due to the weight of clothes when being placed for use. The drying device may further include a sterilizing unit to prevent the possibility of bacteria breeding in the laundry in a wet environment.

In view of the above, an aspect of the present invention provides a portable clothes drying device, which includes a base unit and an air outlet unit; the base unit includes: an air inlet arranged at the bottom of the base unit; a plurality of feet disposed around the air inlet at the bottom of the base unit, and extending from the surface of the bottom of the base unit; a heating part arranged in the base unit; and an air exhaust part arranged in the base unit. The air outlet unit is connected with the base unit, and the surface of the air outlet unit is provided with at least one air outlet hole; wherein, this convulsions portion is sent into this air-out unit with outside air by this air intake suction, is sent to the outside by this exhaust vent again.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the bottom surfaces of the plurality of feet are parallel to, but not coplanar with, the surface of the base unit bottom.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, each of the plurality of feet further has a supporting element pivotally connected to an end of each of the plurality of feet.

Furthermore, the supporting element is a supporting sheet, and an elastic structure is arranged between the supporting element and each foot part to provide an elastic restoring force so as to expand the supporting element and each of the plurality of foot parts.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the base unit further includes a battery module and a power input portion, the power input portion is electrically connected to an external power source, and the power source of the base unit is provided by the battery module or the power input portion.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the base unit further comprises a thermal insulation layer arranged on an outer surface of the base unit.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the base unit further includes a sterilizing part disposed inside the base unit or inside the air outlet unit.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the air outlet unit further includes a plurality of extending portions respectively extending toward a direction away from the base unit, and a plurality of air outlet holes are disposed on surfaces of the plurality of extending portions.

Furthermore, each of the plurality of extending portions is provided with a plurality of extending ends, the plurality of extending ends are arranged at intervals, and at least one of the plurality of extending ends is provided with an interval adjusting element so as to adjust the intervals of the plurality of extending ends; alternatively, according to another embodiment of the present invention, each of the plurality of extending portions and/or the plurality of extending ends is provided with a telescopic element for adjusting the length.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the base unit is configured to be received in a vehicle cup holder.

The portable clothes drying device provided by the invention has the advantages that: through the special foot structure design, the portable clothes drying device can be stably arranged in various spaces, and an air inlet channel of the portable clothes drying device can be ensured not to be shielded; and the portable clothes drying device can provide the functions of heating, drying and sterilizing at the same time. In addition, the extension part of the portable clothes drying device is provided with an interval adjusting element or a telescopic element, so that the extension part can be adjusted corresponding to different clothes.

Drawings

In order to make the aforementioned and other objects, features, advantages and embodiments of the invention more comprehensible, the following description is given:

fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a portable clothes drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a portable clothes drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are a schematic cross-sectional view and a schematic bottom view of a base unit according to an embodiment of the invention;

fig. 4A and 4B are partial schematic views of a portable clothes drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a use state of the portable clothes drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a use state of the portable clothes drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The various features and elements of the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the particular features and elements of the invention in a preferred embodiment. Moreover, the same or similar reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to similar elements and components.

The reference numbers are as follows:

10,20 portable clothes drying device

100 base unit

110 foot part

112 supporting element

114 elastic structure

120 power input part

130 power switch

140 warning light

150 insulating layer

152 heating part

154 air draft part

156 sterilizing part

158 battery

160A connection port

160B air inlet

200,200' air outlet unit

210,210' extension

212,212' air outlet

214 telescoping member

216 gap adjusting element

218 extension end

300 connecting part

G, clothes

R is radius

Detailed Description

In order to make the description of the present invention more complete and thorough, the following illustrative description of the present invention is provided for embodiments and examples of the present invention, but it is not intended to be the only form in which the embodiments of the present invention may be practiced or utilized. In this specification and the claims which follow, the terms "a" and "an" and "the" are to be construed as referring to the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Furthermore, in this specification and the claims that follow, unless otherwise indicated, the term "disposed on" or "disposed on" may be considered to refer directly or indirectly to a surface of something attached or otherwise in contact with, and the definition of such surface should be determined from the context of the specification in the fore-aft/paragraph and the general knowledge of the art to which this specification pertains.

Although numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the invention are approximate, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are presented as precisely as possible. Any numerical value, however, inherently contains certain standard deviations found in their respective testing measurements. As used herein, "about" generally means that the actual value is within plus or minus 10%, 5%, 1%, or 0.5% of a particular value or range. Alternatively, the term "about" indicates that the actual value falls within the acceptable standard error of the mean, and is within the purview of one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains. Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the specification and attached claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained. At the very least, these numerical parameters are to be understood as meaning the number of significant digits and the number resulting from applying ordinary rounding techniques.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a portable clothes drying apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 1, the portable clothes drying device 100 includes a base unit 100 and an air outlet unit 200, and the base unit 100 is disposed below the air outlet unit 200 and connected to each other through a connecting portion 300.

In a preferred embodiment, the base unit 100 is a hollow cylindrical housing, and the bottom of the base unit 100 is provided with a plurality of feet 110; preferably, the plurality of feet 110 are spaced apart at equal intervals around the bottom surface of the base unit 100. On the other hand, one end of each of the plurality of feet 110 is pivotally connected to each of the plurality of supporting members 112, and an elastic structure 114 is disposed therebetween. The side of the base unit 100 is provided with a power input portion 120, and a surface of the base unit close to the air outlet unit 200 is further provided with a power switch 130 and at least one indicator light 140.

The air outlet unit 200 has at least one extending portion 210, the extending portion 210 is connected to the connecting portion 300, and the surface thereof has at least one air outlet 212. According to some embodiments of the present invention, the air outlet unit 200 is provided with a plurality of the extending portions 210, and the surfaces of the extending portions 210 are respectively provided with a plurality of air outlet holes 212.

Fig. 3A and 3B are a cross-sectional view and a bottom view of the base unit 100 according to an embodiment of the invention. Referring to fig. 1 to 3B, the foot 110 substantially extends from the bottom surface of the base unit 100; preferably, the bottom surface of the foot 110 is parallel to, and not coplanar with, the bottom surface of the base unit 100; in other words, the gap between the plurality of feet 110 and the distance between the bottom surface of the feet 110 and the bottom surface of the base unit 100 together form a gap for air to flow through. The elastic structure 114 disposed between the foot 110 and the supporting element 112 is used to provide an elastic restoring force to expand the supporting element 112 and the foot 110. In other words, the support element 112 and the foot 110 tend to naturally expand unless the resilient structure 114 is applied with an opposing force corresponding to the resilient restoring force. However, the angle between the foot 110 and the supporting element 112 when the device is opened can be adjusted according to the requirement, and the invention is not limited to the actual value. In addition, the form of the spring structure 114 may be slightly modified without departing from the concepts of the present invention; for example: according to some embodiments of the present invention, the elastic structure 114 (e.g., a spring) can be connected to the two corresponding surfaces of the supporting element 112 and the foot 110, respectively, and the exterior of the elastic structure can be covered by a foldable fan-shaped structure to protect the elastic structure 114, so as to present an accordion-like structure in appearance, as shown in fig. 2; according to other embodiments of the present invention, the elastic structure 114 is disposed parallel to the joint surface between the supporting member 112 and the foot 110, and allows the supporting member 112 and the foot 110 to pivot about the joint surface when the supporting member and the foot are opened. In addition, a fastening structure (not shown) may be disposed as required to fold the supporting elements 112 to the feet 11.

The base unit 100 may be a hollow cylindrical housing. The upper end of the base unit 100 is a connection port 160A for communicating and connecting with the connection portion 300; the lower end of the base unit 100 is an air inlet 160B, and air can enter the inner space of the base unit from the outside through the air inlet 160B. The inner space of the base unit 100 includes a heating portion 152, an air-drawing portion 154, and a sterilizing portion 156; preferably, between the connection port 160A and the air inlet 160B, the heating portion 152, the air exhausting portion 154 and the sterilizing portion 156 are sequentially disposed from top to bottom, so that the air exhausting portion 154 can sequentially pass through the sterilizing portion 156 and the heating portion 152 after air is pumped into the inner space of the base unit 100 from the outside through the air inlet 160B, and enter the connection portion 300 and the air outlet unit 200 through the connection port 160A. Specifically, the heating part 152 includes at least one known heating element for converting electric energy into heat energy and heating air; the known heating element may include, but is not limited to, a heating coil. The exhaust portion 154 includes at least one fan, such that the rotating blades draw an airflow therethrough. In some embodiments of the present invention, the sterilizing part 156 includes at least one uv light source and/or an anion disinfectant (not shown), specifically, the uv light source irradiates towards the connection port 160A, and the anion disinfectant may exist in the form of liquid droplets or gas and may be transferred to the air outlet unit 200 through the air flow passing through the sterilizing part 156. In some embodiments, the disinfecting part may also be disposed inside the air outlet unit (not shown), for example: the sterilizing part is an ultraviolet light source, and the air outlet unit is in a light-permeable form (such as transparent, perforated or meshed), so that the clothes sleeved outside the air outlet unit can receive heated air and can be sterilized by ultraviolet light at the same time.

The base unit 100 is provided with a battery 158 electrically connected to the power input portion 120, the heating portion 152, the air exhaust portion 154 and the sterilization portion 156, for obtaining electric energy from an external power source through the power input portion 120 and further supplying the electric energy to the heating portion 152, the air exhaust portion 154 and the sterilization portion 156; preferably, the base unit 100 further has a control portion (not shown) for connecting the power switch 130 with the heating portion 152, the exhausting portion 154 and the disinfecting portion 156 respectively, so as to facilitate the user to adjust and control the switch of the corresponding device according to the functional requirements. In another preferred embodiment, the base unit is provided with a battery module (e.g., battery 158), which can be rechargeable, and the power source of the base unit can be provided independently from the battery module for the user to use while carrying the base unit out.

The outer surface of the base unit 100 is provided with a thermal insulation layer 150; the insulating layer 150 comprises a known insulating material to insulate the heat energy dissipated by the heating portion 152 when the base unit is held by a user. In addition, in order to facilitate the use of the present invention in a general vehicle, the base unit 100 is preferably designed to be placed in a receiving space of a general vehicle, such as a cup holder for a vehicle, and the base unit 100 may have a cylindrical shape; preferably, the bottom surface of the base unit 100 defines a radius R, which is between 3 and 6 centimeters; more preferably, the radius R has a length of between 4 and 5 cm; still more preferably, the radius R has a length of between 4 and 4.5 cm. One skilled in the art can modify the shape and size of the base unit 100 as desired.

Fig. 4A and 4B are partial schematic views of a portable clothes drying device according to an embodiment of the invention. Referring to fig. 1, 4A and 4B together, the connecting portion 300 connects the base unit 100 and the air outlet unit 200; preferably, the connecting portion 300 is disposed between the base unit 100 and the extending portion 210, and the connecting portion 300 and the extending portion 210 are hollow shells for allowing air to pass through. Further, the extension portion 210 is provided with at least one telescopic element 214 to adjust the length of the extension portion 210; according to some embodiments of the present invention, at least one telescopic element 214 is also disposed between the connecting portion 300 and the base unit 100 to adjust the distance between the connecting portion 300 and the base unit 100. More specifically, a plurality of the telescopic elements 214 are disposed between the extension portion 210 or the connecting portion 300 and the base unit 100. According to some embodiments of the present invention, the plurality of telescopic elements 214 are concentrically overlapped by a plurality of hollow cylindrical housings with a diameter from large to small, so as to achieve the function of adjusting the distance or the length; in essence, any two of the hollow cylinders are fixed or relatively moved by the engaging groove, but the invention is not limited thereto.

Continuing with the above, the extension 210 further includes a plurality of extensions 218, the plurality of extensions 218 being spaced apart from each other; preferably, the plurality of extensions 218 are spaced to correspond to the geometry of a particular garment, such as: if the specific garment is a glove, the plurality of extension ends 218 are arranged at intervals corresponding to the shape of the palm; if the particular article of clothing is a sock, shoe or boot, the plurality of extensions 218 are spaced to correspond to the shape of the foot (not shown). Further, an interval adjusting element 216 may be optionally provided on at least one of the plurality of extending ends 218 to adjust the interval of the plurality of extending ends 218. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spacing adjustment element 216 is disposed at one end of the extension portion 218 near the connection portion 300; preferably, the spacing adjustment element 216 can be a rotating shaft, such that the extension end 218 can rotate along with it partially disengaging from the extension portion 210, thereby adjusting the spacing distance of the extension ends 218.

Fig. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a use state of the portable laundry drying device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 5, in use, a user can wrap the extension portion 210 with a garment G; according to some embodiments of the invention, the garment G may be a glove. The portable clothes drying device 10 can obtain power from an external power source (not shown) through the power input portion 120 (such as a USB port) to supply power to various components contained therein. The user can activate and/or control the portable laundry drying device 10 through the power switch 130; preferably, the user can start all or part of the functions of the portable clothes drying apparatus 10 according to the requirement, and know the current functional use status of the portable clothes drying apparatus 10 through the signal displayed by the indicator lamp 140.

The drying device of the present invention is convenient to carry around for use, as shown in fig. 5, the plurality of feet 110 and the plurality of supporting elements 112 are in an open state due to the elastic restoring force provided by the plurality of elastic structures 114, so that the portable clothes drying device 10 can stand on a flat surface stably, and is suitable for example: the device is used in various spaces in offices, camping places, homes and the like. On the other hand, when the user places the portable clothes drying apparatus 10 in a receiving space (e.g., a cup holder for a vehicle) partially or wholly covering the plurality of feet 110 and the plurality of supporting elements 112, the receiving space can cause the plurality of elastic structures 114 to be pressed by a reverse force relative to the elastic restoring force, that is, an external pushing force is generated between the plurality of feet 110 and the plurality of supporting elements 112, so that the base unit 100 can be stably clamped in receiving spaces with different sizes or shapes, and is suitable for being used in vehicles with various brands and models. It should be noted that, since the plurality of feet 110 extend from the bottom of the base unit 100, and the bottom surface of the feet 110 is parallel to and not coplanar with the surface of the bottom of the base unit 100, the gap between the plurality of feet 110 allows the external air to flow into the inside of the base unit 100 without hindrance when the portable laundry drying device 10 is placed in the accommodating space. As can be understood from the above description, the portable laundry drying device 10 can stand stably regardless of being placed on a horizontal surface or in the accommodating space, and can allow external air to enter the base unit 100 quickly and smoothly; the air processed according to the user's requirement enters the air outlet unit 200 through the connection portion 300, and flows to the clothes G through the extension portion 210 and the air outlet 212.

Fig. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a use state of the portable laundry drying device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 6, the portable clothes drying apparatus 20 is substantially similar to the portable clothes drying apparatus 10. However, the difference between the present embodiment and the previous embodiments is that the air outlet unit 200' included in the portable laundry drying device 20 is directly connected to the base unit 100, and the air outlet unit 200' includes an extension portion 210' configured as a cylindrical structure with a hemispherical top; in addition, a plurality of air outlets 212 'are formed at the top of the extension 210'. According to the present embodiment, the user can place various kinds of clothes corresponding to the extension portion 210' according to the requirement, such as but not limited to snow boots. According to some embodiments of the present invention, the user can also directly use the hot air or the disinfection liquid/gas generated by the portable laundry drying device 20 to generate the heating or disinfection effect on the surrounding environment.

In summary, the portable clothes drying device provided by the invention can be stably arranged in each accommodating space and can be stably placed on a plane, so that the portability of the portable clothes drying device is improved; on the other hand, the portable clothes drying device provided by the invention can be used for various clothes with different geometric forms and provides the functions of heating, drying, disinfecting, cleaning and the like.

Claims (11)

1. A portable clothes drying device, comprising:

a base unit, comprising:

an air inlet arranged at the bottom of the base unit;

the plurality of feet are arranged at the bottom of the base unit around the air inlet, and extend out from the surface of the bottom of the base unit;

a heating part arranged in the base unit; and

the air suction part is arranged in the base unit; and

the air outlet unit is connected with the base unit, and an air outlet hole is formed in the surface of the air outlet unit;

wherein, this convulsions portion is with outside air by this air intake suction and send this air-out unit into, send outside to by this exhaust vent again.

2. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the bottom surfaces of the plurality of feet are parallel to and non-coplanar with the surface of the base unit bottom.

3. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of feet further comprises a support member pivotally connected to an end of each of the plurality of feet.

4. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 3, wherein the supporting member is a supporting sheet, and an elastic structure is provided between the supporting member and each of the feet to provide an elastic restoring force to expand the supporting member and each of the feet.

5. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the base unit further comprises a battery module and a power input portion, the power input portion is electrically connected to an external power source, and the power source of the base unit is provided by the battery module or the power input portion.

6. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the base unit further comprises a thermal insulation layer disposed on an outer surface of the base unit.

7. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the base unit further comprises a sterilizing part disposed inside the base unit or inside the air outlet unit.

8. The portable clothes drying device of claim 1, wherein the air outlet unit further comprises a plurality of extending portions respectively extending in a direction away from the base unit, and a plurality of air outlets are disposed on surfaces of the extending portions.

9. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of extension portions has a plurality of extension ends, the plurality of extension ends are spaced apart from each other, and at least one of the plurality of extension ends has a spacing adjustment element for adjusting the spacing between the plurality of extension ends.

10. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 8 or 9, wherein each of the plurality of extension portions and/or the plurality of extension ends is provided with a telescopic element for adjusting the length.

11. The portable clothes drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the base unit is received in a vehicle cup holder.

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