CN117881841A - Iron with a sole - Google Patents

Abstract

An iron (10) comprising a water tank (13) and a steam generating device (17), the water tank (13) being adapted to contain water, the steam generating device (17) being configured to receive a portion of the water from the water tank (13) and to heat and evaporate the water.

Description

Iron with a sole

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an iron for both professional and domestic use, in particular a steam iron, wherein steam is generated inside the iron itself.

Background

There is known an iron provided with a water tank and a boiler or evaporation chamber, wherein water from the water tank is converted into steam by means of an electric heating element, and the steam is then conveyed to the outside through an ironing base plate provided with holes for conveying the steam itself, in order to improve ironing.

The water tank and the evaporation chamber are in fluid communication, and a selector is typically interposed therebetween, which allows water contained in the water tank to pass toward the evaporation chamber if the user operates the selector.

When water comes into contact with the walls of the evaporation chamber, it is almost immediately heated until it reaches the boiling point and becomes water vapor.

The evaporation chamber is in turn in communication with holes in the ironing base plate, from which the generated water vapor can leave and then spread onto the garment being treated.

In the known iron, the above-mentioned selector has only two functional positions, namely a closed position in which the selector completely prevents water from flowing from the water tank to the evaporation chamber, and an open position in which the selector allows water to flow from the water tank to the evaporation chamber. The transition from the closed position to the open position and vice versa occurs suddenly and no intermediate position is possible.

Therefore, in such an iron, steam can only be delivered in a fixed and predetermined amount, and the user is not allowed to change the amount of steam desired to be delivered.

A disadvantage of this known type of iron is therefore that it is not possible for the user to adjust the steam flow generated and delivered on the garment.

Another drawback of the known solution is due to the fact that, as the water passes, when the selector is in the open position, the water continues to be consumed even when the iron is stationary and horizontally positioned during ironing.

It is also known to have a valve between the tank and the selector operated by a bimetallic strip which deforms in accordance with the temperature in the evaporation chamber. In particular, when a specific operating temperature sufficient to evaporate water immediately is reached and exceeded, the above-mentioned sheet deforms by bending on one side and opens the valve.

This solution, although understood by the fact of preventing the loss of liquid water from the holes of the ironing base plate in the case of operating the selector before reaching the operating temperature, has some drawbacks.

One disadvantage is that, since the opening of the water passage towards the plate is controlled by the bimetal, the behaviour of which depends on the temperature, the user must adhere to a certain time, which may also be a few minutes, in order to be able to use steam, effectively increasing the time required to perform the ironing operation.

Another disadvantage is that the valve and bi-metallic strip require calibration and fine tuning to achieve the desired effect. These calibration and adjustment operations have a negative impact on the production costs of the iron.

A further disadvantage is that this known type of valve itself has a high production cost, which has a negative impact on the total cost of the iron.

Document FR2570098A3 discloses an iron provided with means for moving stepwise the valve stem of a valve arranged between the water tank and the evaporation chamber and locking it in a predetermined position. The water supply is regulated by means of a regulating disk, on which a cam lever is fixed, which is connected to the valve stem and cooperates with a retaining plate having a saw-tooth shape to lock it in a given position.

WO2010/054995 discloses an iron provided with a valve stem control device comprising an actuator operable by a user to move a valve stem from a closed position to a predetermined open position in cooperation with a limiting device limiting the displacement of the valve stem.

Other irons of known type are described in FR2776214A1, US6167643B1 and DE102008021600 A1.

It is therefore desirable to realize a new and original iron that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art.

The aim of the present invention is to achieve an iron that allows the user to directly adjust the steam flow generated and delivered on the garment to be ironed.

Another object of the present invention is to achieve an iron that is inexpensive and easy to produce.

It is a further object of the present invention to achieve an iron which makes it possible to reduce the time that passes from when the iron is switched on to the moment when steam can be generated and delivered.

The applicant has studied, tested and achieved the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and to obtain the above and other purposes and benefits.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention is expressed and characterized in the independent claims. The dependent claims show other features of the invention or variants of the main solutions proposed.

In accordance with the above purposes, an iron that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art and eliminates the drawbacks present therein comprises: a water tank adapted to contain water, a steam generating device configured to receive a portion of the water from the water tank and heat and evaporate the water.

According to one aspect of the invention, the iron further comprises an adjustment device configured to allow a user to manually adjust the amount of water transferred from the water tank to the steam generating means from time to time.

In particular, the regulating device is configured to allow a user to progressively change the flow rate of water delivered to the steam regulating device during ironing.

According to one aspect of the invention, the regulating device comprises or is associated with a manual control element by means of which the regulating device is operable by a user during ironing.

According to another aspect of the invention, the iron further comprises a receiving structure, said water tank being mounted in the receiving structure and a manual control element being mounted on said structure.

According to another aspect of the invention, the manual control element is arranged substantially at the handle of the structure in a position such that the user can operate with the same hand that grips the iron.

According to another aspect of the invention, the regulating device further comprises an opening and closing (shutter) member connected to the manual control element and gradually movable with respect to the outlet opening of the water to vary the passage section and regulate the flow rate of the water.

In particular, the position of the shutter member relative to the outlet opening is proportional to the action exerted by the user on the manual control member.

"action" in this and the following description generally refers to interaction with a manual control member such that the force or pressure exerted thereon can be varied to change its strength and thus the degree of displacement of the opening and closing member.

In particular, the opening and closing member may be continuously movable with respect to the outlet opening without a predefined step or position. The degree of displacement of the shutter member relative to the outlet opening is proportional to the force and/or pressure exerted by the user on the manual control element.

By "progressive" in this and in the following description is meant that the opening and closing member is able to move substantially continuously in accordance with the action exerted on the manual control member, so that the passage cross section of the outlet opening is also substantially continuously adjustable, gradually increasing, between a fully closed position and a fully open position.

In particular, the opening and closing member may take any intermediate position between a fully closed position, in which it prevents the water from leaving the tank, and a fully open position, in which the water is fed to the steam generating device at the maximum available flow rate.

By pressing the manual control element with a progressive force, the passage section is also increased and thus the amount of steam generated is progressively increased.

Thus, the adjusting device is very simple and intuitive to use.

According to an embodiment, the opening and closing member has an opening and closing end associated with an opening and closing element cooperating with the outlet opening of the tank, and an operating end opposite the opening and closing end and operable by the manual control element to cause translation of the opening and closing element and thus to move the opening and closing member away from the outlet opening and bring the opening and closing member towards the fully open position.

According to another aspect of the invention, the shutter member comprises an elongate valve stem (elongated stem) having a cavity at the shutter end, the depth of the cavity varying progressively along the longitudinal axis of the valve stem.

In particular, the depth of the cavity increases in a direction opposite to the direction of travel of the valve stem between the fully closed position and the fully open position.

According to another aspect of the invention, the regulating device further comprises elastic means configured to normally hold the shutter member in the fully closed position.

In this way, when no force is exerted on the manual control element, the opening and closing member closes the outlet opening, and therefore when the iron is not in use, it does not deliver steam and no water leakage occurs through the ironing base plate.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the manual control element is a primary lever having a fulcrum on the structure, a control portion arranged below the handle, and an opposite operating portion in contact with the opening and closing member.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the extension (development) of the control portion is greater than the extension of the operating portion, both measured from the fulcrum.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the manual control element comprises a movable part configured to rotate about an axis of rotation and on which a cavity is formed having an eccentric profile with a cam function. Further, the shutter member comprises a constraining element having a cam follower function, the constraining element being configured to be in contact with the eccentric profile, whereby rotation of the movable part causes translation of the constraining element and the shutter member.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the manual control element comprises a fixed portion on which a guiding groove is formed, into which the constraining element is partially inserted, the groove being configured to guide the translation of the constraining element.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the steam generating device comprises an evaporation chamber having an inlet opening, a distribution manifold being interposed between the outlet opening of the water tank and the inlet opening of the evaporation chamber.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the iron comprises a manually operable selector arranged upstream of the inlet opening of the evaporation chamber and configured to selectively block the manifold.

The object of the invention is also a method of using an iron according to the invention, comprising supplying water from a water tank to a steam generating device and converting the water into steam. The method comprises adjusting the amount of water delivered from the water tank to the steam generating device, wherein, in order to adjust the amount of water, the method comprises gradually moving the shutter member relative to the outlet opening of the water between a fully closed position, in which the shutter member prevents the water from leaving the water tank, and an open position, in which the position of the shutter member relative to the outlet opening is proportional to the action exerted by the user on the manual control member.

Drawings

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the disclosure of some embodiments, provided by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of an iron according to the present invention;

fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the iron of fig. 1;

fig. 3 is an isometric view of a second embodiment of an iron according to the present invention;

fig. 4 is a front cross-sectional view of the iron of fig. 3.

It should be noted that in the present description and in the claims, the term vertical and its variants have the sole function of better illustrating the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings and are not intended in any way to limit the scope of the invention or the protection scope defined by the appended claims. For example, the term vertical is intended to mean an axis or plane, which may be perpendicular to the horizontal, or inclined even a few degrees, e.g. up to 20 °.

Furthermore, those skilled in the art will recognize that certain dimensions or features in the drawings may have been enlarged, distorted or illustrated in a non-conventional or non-proportional manner to provide a more readily understood version of the invention. When dimensions and/or values are specified in the following description, the dimensions and/or values are provided for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention unless such dimensions and/or values are present in the appended claims.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It should be noted that elements and features of an embodiment may be conveniently combined or incorporated into other embodiments without further elaboration.

Detailed Description

Referring to fig. 1, an iron 10 according to the present invention comprises an external housing structure 11, the housing structure 11 defining a handle 12 in an upper portion thereof, and a water tank 13 for containing water therein.

The tank 13 is defined by a plurality of walls of any shape suitable to be housed inside the structure 11, and in particular the tank 13 comprises a lower wall 14.

The water tank 13 comprises an inlet opening 15 and an outlet opening 16, the inlet opening 15 being arranged substantially in an upper part of the water tank 13, adapted to allow a user to introduce water into the interior thereof, the outlet opening 16 being arranged substantially in the lower wall 14.

The inlet opening 15 may be associated with a cover (not shown) for its closure.

The iron 10 further comprises a steaming group 17, the steaming group 17 preferably being arranged below the water tank 13 and comprising a containment body 18, the containment body 18 cooperating with an upper closing plate 19 defining therein a substantially closed steaming chamber 20 (fig. 2) having at least one inlet opening 21.

The inlet opening 21 of the evaporation chamber 20 is provided on the upper closing plate 19 in a position substantially aligned with the outlet opening 16 of the water tank 13, or alternatively the inlet opening 21 of the evaporation chamber 20 may be misaligned with respect to the outlet opening 16 of the water tank 13.

According to an embodiment, a distribution pipe or manifold 22 is interposed between the tank 13 and the upper closing plate 19 to fluidly connect the outlet opening 16 of the tank 13 with the inlet opening 21 of the evaporation chamber 20.

The manifold 22 may comprise a generally tubular body of any shape suitable for collecting water discharged from the tank 13 and delivering it into the evaporation chamber 20.

Alternatively, the iron 10 may comprise a user operable selector 23, the selector 23 being configured to selectively block the manifold 22, in particular to open or close the inlet opening 21 of the evaporation chamber 20.

The selector 23 may include an opening and closing portion 27, the opening and closing portion 27 being partially disposed in the manifold 22 between the outlet opening 16 of the water tank 13 and the inlet opening 21 of the evaporation chamber 20, and having a shape at least partially conjugate with the inlet opening 21.

The selector 23 has a control portion 24 adjacent to the handle 12, through which control portion 24 the user can selectively operate the selector 23.

The selector 23 may be of a type known per se, for example of the snap-in type, having a first operative position in which the selector 23 completely prevents the flow of water from the manifold 22 to the evaporation chamber 20, and a second operative position in which the selector 23 allows the flow of water from the manifold 22 to the evaporation chamber 20.

The iron 10 further comprises at least one heating element 25, the heating element 25 being associated with the containing body 18 and configured to heat the evaporation chamber 20.

In the embodiment provided herein, the heating element 25 consists of or comprises a resistor integrated within the containing body 18.

An ironing soleplate 26 is arranged below the steaming group 17 and comprises one or more delivery holes 28 fluidly connected to the steaming chamber 20.

The ironing base plate 26 can be independent with respect to the evaporating group 17 and is fixed thereto by means of fixing means of known type.

Alternatively, the ironing base plate 26 may be integrated into the containing body 18 and may be constituted, for example, by a lower portion thereof.

According to one aspect of the invention, the iron 10 comprises an adjustment device 30, the adjustment device 30 being configured to allow a user to manually and progressively adjust the flow rate of water transferred from the water tank 13 to the evaporation group 17.

The regulating device 30 comprises an opening and closing member 31, the opening and closing member 31 being selectively movable with respect to the outlet opening 16 of the water between a fully closed position, in which the opening and closing member 31 prevents the water from leaving the water tank 13, and a fully open position, in which the water can leave the water tank 13 and reach the evaporation group 17 at the maximum available flow rate.

In particular, the shutter member 31 may take any intermediate position between the fully closed position and the fully open position, so as to vary the passage section of the water, allowing the regulation of the water flow rate.

The passage cross section and thus the flow rate of the water may be adjusted substantially continuously.

The adjustment device 30 comprises or is associated with a manual control element 45, which manual control element 45 is connected to the opening and closing member 31 and is operable by a user to move the opening and closing member 31 relative to the outlet opening 16.

The manual control member 45 is a separate element with respect to the control portion 24 of the selector 23 and may operate independently thereof.

The opening and closing member 31 comprises an opening and closing end 35, the opening and closing end 35 being arranged downstream of the outlet opening 16, and the opening and closing end 35 being associated with an opening and closing element 36, the opening and closing element 36 being configured to close the outlet opening 16.

The regulating device 30 further comprises elastic means 42, the elastic means 42 being configured to hold the shutter member 31 in the fully closed position, i.e. to bring the shutter element 36 against the outlet opening 16.

This is advantageous because it prevents water from leaving the tank 13 even in the event that a possible selector 23 is activated accidentally or prematurely. This solution is much simpler and more economical than the prior art, in which, in order to achieve this result, it is envisaged to provide the iron with a complex valve operated by a very expensive bimetallic strip.

In the embodiment provided herein, the shutter member 31 comprises an elongated valve stem 32 movable along a longitudinal axis S and arranged at least partially in the outlet opening 16 of the tank 13. Preferably, the axis S coincides with the longitudinal development axis of the valve stem 32 and passes through the centre of the outlet opening 16 of the tank 13.

According to an embodiment, the opening and closing element 36 is or comprises a gasket or "O-ring" which is substantially adhered to the valve stem 32 and protrudes radially from its opening and closing end 35. In this case, the shutter element 36 is adapted to rest against the lower wall 14 of the tank 13, and in particular against the periphery of the outlet opening 16 thereof.

At its open and closed end 35, on the valve stem 32, a cavity 37 is formed having a longitudinal profile that diverges toward the interior of the valve stem 32 with respect to the axis S. In other words, the depth of the cavity 37, measured perpendicular to the axis S, varies gradually along a direction parallel to the same axis S.

For example, the longitudinal cross-section of the cavity 37 may be triangular or trapezoidal with respect to a plane of symmetry of the valve stem 32 including the axis S. In this case, the depth may vary continuously and linearly along the axis S.

In particular, the depth of the cavity 37 increases in a direction opposite to the direction of travel of the valve stem 32 between the fully closed position and the fully open position.

The displacement of the valve stem 32 relative to the outlet opening 16 then determines the displacement of the cavity 37 relative to the outlet opening 16 and thus the variation of the passage cross section of the outlet opening 16.

Due to the combination of the continuously movable shutter member 31 and the triangular/trapezoidal cavity 37 and the continuously varying depth, the flow rate of water supplied from the water tank 13 to the steam generating set 17 can be easily adjusted.

With constant reference to the embodiments provided herein, at least a portion of the valve stem 32 may be received in a substantially cylindrical guide member 38 and include a reaction end 39 having an opening 40 through which the valve stem 32 may pass.

The circular sealing member 34 is fixed to a portion of the valve stem 32 accommodated in the guide member 38 to prevent water accommodated in the water tank 13 from rising along the guide member 38.

The circular sealing element 34 is advantageously configured to slide on the inner wall of the guide element 38 while remaining integral with the valve stem 32.

Said opening 40 is preferably aligned with and arranged above the outlet opening 16 of the tank 13 along the axis S. The guide element 38 is preferably made as a single body with the structure 11 and/or with the wall of the tank 13.

In the embodiment provided herein, the valve stem 32 comprises a reaction portion 41, which reaction portion 41 is arranged within the guide element 38 and consists of a portion of the valve stem 32 having a larger diameter than the rest thereof.

In the first embodiment (fig. 1 and 2), the elastic means 42 comprise a spring 43 interposed between the reaction end 39 and the reaction portion 41 and adapted to act on the latter, while maintaining the gasket 36 against the lower wall 14 of the tank 13 for elastic return.

In contrast, in the second embodiment (fig. 4), the spring 43 is interposed between the reaction portion 41 and the upper wall 47 fixed to the outer structure 11 and is adapted to act on the reaction portion and the upper wall while maintaining the open-close end 35 in a closed position for elastic return, in which the outlet opening 16 is closed.

In both cases, the above-mentioned spring 43 may be helical, and its central axis may substantially coincide with the axis S.

In another embodiment, not shown in the figures, the reaction portion 41 of the valve stem 32 may be arranged outside the guide element 38 and directly above the bottom wall 14 of the tank 13; in this case, the spring 43 may be interposed between the bottom wall 14 and the reaction portion 41 and function substantially as described above. Also in this embodiment, the spring 43 may be helical, arranged with its central axis substantially coincident with the axis S.

The valve stem 32 further comprises an operating end 44 opposite the opening and closing end 35, which operating end 44 is arranged substantially at the handle 12 and is associated with a manual control element 45 by means of which the opening and closing member 31 can be operated.

According to a first embodiment, the manual control element 45 comprises a primary lever 46, the primary lever 46 having a fulcrum F on the structure 11.

In particular, the lever 46 may comprise a control portion 48 and an opposite operating portion 49, the control portion 48 preferably being arranged below the handle 12, the operating portion 49 being in contact with the valve stem 32.

The operating portion 49 is configured to contact the operating end 44 of the valve stem 32 and to press the valve stem 32 when a user acts on the control portion 48.

The control portion 48 is advantageously disposed in a lower portion or interior of the handle 12. In other words, the control portion 48 is disposed in an area of the handle 12 which is adapted to be wrapped by a user's finger in use. In this way, the user can directly act on the shutter member 31 with the same hand that grasps the iron 10 and gradually vary the flow rate of water supplied to the evaporating group 17 while he or she is ironing.

When the user presses the control portion 48 with his or her finger, the control portion 48 is raised by rotating a few degrees about the fulcrum F, and therefore, the operating portion 49 is lowered to press on the operating end 44 of the valve stem 32 so as to slide downward. This moves the open-close end 35 and thus the open-close element 36 away from the outlet opening 16, bringing it to any desired intermediate position between the fully closed position and the fully open position.

The extent of displacement of the valve stem 32, and hence the plug member 36, relative to the outlet opening 16 is substantially proportional to the amount of force exerted by the user on the control portion 48. This makes it particularly easy and intuitive to adjust the flow rate of water supplied to the evaporation group 17.

Note that the sliding of the valve stem 32 causes the cavity 37 to be located in the outlet opening 16 of the water tank 13 and thus forms a passage for water from the water tank 13 towards the evaporation group 17.

The diverging profile of the cavity 37 results in a continuous and gradual change in the passage cross-section and thus in a continuous and gradual change in the water flow rate, depending on the degree of sliding of the valve stem 32.

Thus, in the first embodiment, in which the valve stem 32 for moving from the closed position to the open position slides from top to bottom, the depth of the cavity 37 gradually increases from bottom to top.

Furthermore, displacement of the valve stem 32 results in compression of the resilient means 42 which generates a reaction force proportional to the sliding movement and which tends to return the shutter element 36 against the outlet opening 16 when no force acts on the control portion 48.

The amount of water vapour generated will therefore be proportional to the distance between the opening and closing element 36 and the outlet opening 16 of the water tank 13 and thus to the pressure exerted by the user on the control portion 48.

Preferably, the lever 46 is advantageous, i.e. the extension L1 of the control portion 48 is greater than the extension L2 of the operating portion 49, both measured from the fulcrum F.

This is advantageous because the range or displacement in the tangential direction of the control portion 48 is larger than the range or displacement in the tangential direction of the operating portion 49 under the same rotation, thereby allowing the user to finely adjust the action of the operating portion 49 and thus the degree of displacement of the opening-closing member 36.

In a second embodiment, the manual control element 45 comprises at least one control portion 48 which is arranged transversely with respect to the operating portion 49 (fig. 3 and 4) and which can be actuated by the thumb of the user. According to the embodiment shown in fig. 3 and 4, two control portions 48 are envisaged, advantageously arranged on one side of the handle 12, respectively, in order to make the iron 10 comfortable for both right-handed and left-handed users.

According to such an embodiment, the or each control portion 48 may have an L-shape, wherein the smaller arm is inserted into the structure 11 and connected to the operating portion 49, while the larger arm extends towards the rear of the iron 10.

In this case, the operating portion 49 includes a fixed portion 50 and a movable portion 52, the movable portion 52 being configured to rotate about the rotation axis X with respect to the outer structure 11 together with the control portion 48.

A cavity 53 is formed on the movable portion 52, symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal axis S and defined in part by an eccentric profile 55 with a cam function.

The fixing portion 50 may also have a substantially straight guide groove 51 extending axially along the longitudinal sliding axis S.

A restraining element 56 (perpendicular to the plane of the paper in fig. 4) is arranged on the operating end 44 of the valve stem 32, having a cam follower function, which engages with the profile 55 of the movable portion 50 and passes through the cavity 53 by being inserted into the rear slot 51.

Actuation of the control portion 48 causes rotation of the movable portion 52 and, therefore, sliding of the profile 55 relative to the constraint element 56.

The eccentric shape of the profile 55 lifts the constraining element 56, the constraining element 56 being constrained to follow the rectilinear direction defined by the slot 51 along the axis S, and therefore it lifts the stem 32 vertically, bringing the cavity 37 to the outlet opening 16.

In this embodiment, the depth of the cavity 37 increases progressively from top to bottom as the valve stem 32 moves from the closed position to the open position.

Also in this embodiment, the degree of displacement of the valve stem 32, and thus the opening and closing member 36 and cavity 37, relative to the outlet opening 16 is substantially proportional to the amount of force exerted by the user on the control portion 48.

Note that the sliding of the valve stem 32 involves the compression of the elastic means 42, 43, which thus generates a reaction force proportional to the sliding, and which tends to return the open-close end 35 to the closed position, in which the open-close end 35 closes the outlet opening 16.

The object of the present invention is also a method of using an iron 10 comprising supplying water from a water tank 13 to a steam generating means 17 and converting the water into steam.

According to one aspect of the invention, the method comprises adjusting the amount of said water delivered from the water tank to the steam generating device 17, wherein for adjusting the amount of water it comprises gradually moving the opening and closing member 31 relative to the outlet opening 16 of the water between a fully closed position, in which the opening and closing member 31 prevents said water from leaving said water tank 13, and an open position, in which the position of said opening and closing member 31 relative to the outlet opening 16 is related to the degree of action exerted by the user on the manual control member 45.

It is evident that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the iron 10 without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the accompanying claims.

It should also be clear that, although the present invention has been described with reference to some specific examples, a person of skill in the art will of course be able to realise many other equivalent embodiments of the iron, all of which fall within the subject matter of the present invention.

In the following claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

Claims (15)

1. Iron (10) comprising a water tank (13), a steam generating device (17) and an adjustment apparatus (30), the water tank (13) being adapted to receive a portion of the water from the water tank (13) and convert it into steam, the steam generating device (17) being adapted to allow a user to manually and progressively adjust the amount of water transferred from the water tank (13) to the steam generating device (17), characterized in that the adjustment apparatus (30) comprises or is associated with a manual control element (45), and further comprising an opening and closing member (31), the opening and closing member (31) being connected to the manual control element (45) and progressively moving relative to an outlet opening (16) of the water to modify a passage cross section and adjust a flow rate of the water, in the fully closed position the opening and closing member (31) preventing water from leaving the water tank (13) and reaching the steam generating device (17), wherein the opening and closing member (31) is proportional to the manual actuation of the opening and closing member (45) relative to the user.

2. Iron according to claim 1, characterized in that the shutter member (32) is configured to move continuously between the fully closed position and a fully open position, wherein the position of the shutter member (31) with respect to the outlet opening (16) is proportional to the force or pressure exerted on the manual control member (45).

3. Iron (10) according to claim 1 or 2, comprising a containing structure (11), said water tank (13) being mounted in said containing structure (11), characterized in that said manual control element (45) is mounted on said structure (11).

4. An iron (10) as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the manual control element (45) is arranged substantially at the handle (12) of the structure (11).

5. The iron (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the adjustment device (30) further comprises elastic means (42), the elastic means (42) being configured to normally hold the shutter member (31) in the fully closed position.

6. An iron (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the shutter member (31) comprises an elongate valve stem (32), the valve stem (32) passing through the outlet opening (16) and comprising a cavity (37), the depth of the cavity (37) varying gradually along the longitudinal axis (S) of the valve stem (32).

7. An iron (10) as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the depth of the cavity (37) increases in a direction opposite to the direction of travel of the valve stem (32) from the fully closed position to the open position.

8. Iron (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the opening and closing member (31) has an opening and closing end (35) and an operating end (44), the opening and closing end (35) being associated with an opening and closing element (36), the opening and closing element (36) cooperating with the outlet opening (16) of the water tank (13), the operating end (44) being opposite the opening and closing end (35) and being operable by the manual control element (45) to cause translation of the opening and closing member (31) and thus move the opening and closing element (36) away from the outlet opening (16) and bring the opening and closing element (36) towards at least any intermediate position between the fully closed position and the fully open position.

9. An iron (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the manual control element (45) is a primary lever (46) having a fulcrum (F) on the structure (11), a control portion (48) arranged below the handle (12) and an opposite operating portion (49) in contact with the shutter member (31).

10. Iron (10) according to claim 9, characterized in that the extension (L1) of the control portion (48) is greater than the extension (L2) of the operating portion (49), both measured from the fulcrum (F).

11. The iron (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the manual control element (45) comprises a movable portion (52), the movable portion (52) being configured to rotate about an axis of rotation (X), a cavity (53) having a cam-functional eccentric profile (55) being formed on the movable portion (52), and the opening and closing member (31) comprising a cam-follower-functional constraining element (56), the constraining element (56) being configured to engage with the eccentric profile (55), whereby rotation of the movable portion (51) causes translation of the constraining element (56) and the opening and closing member (31).

12. The iron (10) according to claim 11, wherein the manual control element (45) comprises a fixed portion (50), on which fixed portion (50) a guiding groove (51) is formed, the guiding groove (51) being configured to guide the translation of the constraining element (56) along the longitudinal axis (S).

13. An iron (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the steam generating device (17) comprises an evaporation chamber (20) having an inlet opening (21), a distribution manifold (22) being interposed between the outlet opening (16) of the water tank (13) and the inlet opening (21) of the evaporation chamber (20).

14. The iron (10) according to claim 13, characterized in that the iron (10) comprises a manually operable selector (23), the selector (23) being arranged upstream of the inlet opening (21) of the evaporation chamber (20) and configured to selectively block the manifold (22).

15. Method of using an iron (10) according to any of the preceding claims, comprising supplying water from a water tank (13) to a steam generating device (17) and converting the water into steam, characterized in that the method comprises adjusting the amount of water delivered from the water tank (13) to the steam generating device (17), wherein the method comprises gradually moving the opening and closing member (31) relative to an outlet opening (16) of the water between the fully closed position, in which the opening and closing member (31) prevents the water from leaving the water tank (13), and an open position, in which the position of the opening and closing member (31) relative to the outlet opening (16) is proportional to an action exerted by a user on the manual control member (45).