DE2530690A1 - WASHING MACHINE - Google Patents

Description

Patent attorneys Dipl.-Ing. I-I. Weickmann, Dipl.-Phys. Dr. K. Fincke

Dipl.-Ing. R A.Weickmann, Dipl.-Chem. B. Huber

SAHA 8 MUNICH 86, DEN

POST BOX 860 820 MÖHLSTRASSE 22, CALL NUMBER 98 39 21/22

Linear International, Rancho La Costa, California,

V.St.A.

Washing machine

The invention relates to a washing machine for textiles, in particular one with a stirring effect, the one with a centrifugal extractor is equipped and has a tub, a stirrer and a centrifugal basket independently of each other or as a unit. The invention is particularly directed to a rebound assisted reversing system for achieving the Directed stirring effect.

In the field of washing machines, drive systems are included mechanically oscillating agitator known, in which energy during the rotation outside of the vibration peak in one of two opposing springs is saved, which is then consumed and part of the declining Torque supplies. In such a system, the agitator and a rigid crank arm are attached to a motor shaft. During the wash cycle, the direction of rotation of the motor is constantly reversed periodically at a predetermined frequency. Almost immediately with every reversal, the rigid crank arm deforms one of the two opposing springs, which with connected to the spin basket. It is obvious that in such a system the stirring movements are primarily depend on the timing that reverses the motor. In addition, in such a system is practically constant at least one of the two springs is deformed. With such a

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-old.

However, neither the position of the springs nor the of the rigid crank arm can easily be changed and therefore it is extremely difficult to adjust the stirring characteristic of such Change the machine without changing the specified operating frequency. Because, moreover, such a machine on the basis reverses this predetermined operating frequency, there is a sharp change in direction or the rebound effect on contact the rotating crank arm with the spring lost; instead the spring serves to absorb the contact energy, by acting as a buffer between the crank arm and the basket. This buffering results in a reduced stirring effect, because it produces a lower speed of rotation; for many tissues this reduction in the stirring effect is undesirable. As far as maintenance is concerned, such a machine of known type is difficult to access and time-consuming to repair.

The invention seeks to solve these problems, and it does so by providing, firstly, a rebound assist reversing device which is capable of, at the time of Reversing the drive motor to achieve a stirring effect at high speed; second, an agitator that is easy to use Way can be modified to change the agitation characteristics, thirdly, an agitator that is not affected by the reverse cycle fourthly, a reversing device that is conveniently accessible and easy to repair, and fifthly an agitator that is independent of the natural frequency.

In US-PS 3,194,032 there is a washing machine and an electromagnetic one Drive system for the machine described in which the drive motor is based on the principle of a linear eddy current induction motor is based. The invention improves on this machine by eliminating the aforementioned, by rebounding includes assisted reversing device.

A major problem with designing a washing machine is that the motor performs two very different tasks.

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must fill. First, high torque is required for washing, to create a stirring movement of sufficient strength for the masohine to do a thorough job of cleaning doing the laundry. On the other hand, a high rotational speed is required for spinning required so that the centrifugal force is sufficient to remove the water from the laundry A major reason that such a high torque is required for the wash cycle is that each Reversing the motor a lot of energy is lost when stopping and reversing the direction of rotation. As mentioned above, the previous one looks Technology as a partial solution to this problem, to buffer the braking force with the help of springs and then to the To store energy transmitted by springs there until the motor has changed direction. This buffering effect has the Disadvantage of slowing down the agitator and thereby reducing the amount of agitation. In addition, the direction of rotation is of the agitator and the spin basket during any period after the crank arm compresses the spring and the direction of the spin basket reverses the same (up to the point of motor reversal) and therefore is during this period only a slight stirring movement or washing effect achieved. These problems are largely resolved by the instant impact-rebound effect achieved by the invention. The invention uses an elastic rebound element, attached to the motor shaft that drives the agitator. This element suggests rigid stops that attached to the basket, and rebounds from it. A reversing switch for the motor reverses the direction of the motor practically at the same time that the element hits a stop. This practically eliminated all times when the agitator and the spin basket move in the same direction, causing the agitation is improved. In addition, the impact-rebound effect allows that a motor with low torque is used, but with a high washing power and a fast dehydration remain. These improvements are special

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for the construction of a washing machine with a single Disc important, which is based on the principle of a linear motor. The reversing mechanism used so far is proportionate difficult to access and difficult to repair. The device according to the invention, on the other hand, is simple and convenient accessible for repair and both the rebound bar and rigid stops are easy to replace. Furthermore, the number of moving parts is reduced to a minimum, since only that in the machine according to the invention Rebound element moves, the rigid stops, however, are fixed to the centrifugal basket. In contrast, with the known devices Both the rigid crank arm and the springs must move. The reduction of moving parts increases the simplicity, with which the stirring movement is achieved.

In the washing machine according to the invention, the tub or the spin basket has inclined walls, which near their top end with holes are provided, which are arranged on the circumference. When this spin basket spins, the detergent solution is through Centrifugal force extracted upwards and propelled out through the holes at the top. The casing of the washing machine is equipped with a drain connection through which the water extracted from the centrifugal basket drains downwards can. This drain connection is bo dimensioned that the The amount flowing off through the drain is less than the maximum amount that can be extracted from the centrifugal basket in the same time. The spin basket is on its outer surface provided with ribs in contact with extracted water that collects in the body of the washing machine come; corresponding ribs are also attached to the housing. When the spin basket is full and the spin cycle begins, the liquid extraction rate is high. Since it is higher at this time than that by the drain in the same For a period of time, the amount of water flowing out, the withdrawn water collects in the housing. The ones attached to the spin basket Ribs come into contact with this accumulated water

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and this contact acts as a braking force for the basket. As a result, the basket slows down and the extraction rate increases away.

As the extraction rate decreases, the amount of water that collects in the housing also decreases; this in turn causes the braking force on the basket to decrease. Because water is continually being removed through the drain, the rate of accumulation may become negative and the rate of extraction will increase. As you can see, when the water is withdrawn from the centrifugal basket, the extraction rate moves around a state of equilibrium or adjusts to it. This equilibrium state of rotation speed increases over the course of the extraction period and reaches a maximum when most of the water has been extracted and there is no accumulated water in the housing. The purpose of the ribs on the inside of the housing is to stabilize the water that collects in the housing. This stabilization prevents the accumulated water from being set in rotation by the centrifugal basket, which would result in a reduction in the braking effect. The low initial extraction rate leads to a better distribution of the laundry items and an improved balance during the subsequent high spin speed ₀

The conventional washing machine generally includes the stirrer, tub and spin basket as separate elements and is also driven by a common motor. As already mentioned above, an otherwise conventional washing machine is described in US Pat. No. 3,194,032, but which has a Includes drive system with linear motor. The washing machine otherwise has the separate washing elements with the result inherent complexity, high manufacturing costs and relatively high maintenance costs. The invention fixes these problems largely by having an agitator, tub and spin basket in such a washing machine

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as integral parts in one piece together with the new, rebound-assisted reverser and which provides a device regulating the rate of extraction of the water

The invention primarily seeks one assisted by rebound Create a reversing device that provides more agitation for washing machines than could previously be achieved. The reversing device should be designed so that it allows the use of motors with lower torque and also allows drive motors that work on the principle of linear motors. The invention also wants a washing machine in which the agitator, the centrifuge basket and the tub are all in one piece. "

How the washing machine according to the invention is constructed in detail, emerges from the claims.

The washing machine according to the invention offers the advantage of a simplified construction which reduces costs thereby but ensures greater operational reliability and requires less maintenance.

Further details of the invention emerge from the following described embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings. Show in it:

1 shows a vertical section through a washing machine conventional tub, agitator and centrifugal basket

FIG. 2 shows a horizontal line along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

3 shows a vertical section through a washing machine in which The tub, centrifugal basket and agitator are designed as one unit;

4 shows a horizontal section along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3f

5 shows an electrical circuit diagram for the inventive Washing machine;

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Fig.6 is a horizontal sectional view similar to Fig.4 * the Figure 3 shows another embodiment of the stops coming into contact with the rebound bar.

The invention "relates specifically to one by rebound supported reversing device and its associated Components in a washing machine. Since the other parts of the washing machine, such as pumps, hoses, holders, lids, etc., Common and already known and given their precise construction for understanding and practicing the invention through is not necessary for a person skilled in the art, these parts are not described in detail.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 1 and 2, the washing machine is in a housing 10 a tub 11 is received and an agitator 12 is mounted on a hollow shaft 13. One on the shaft 13 Screwed on cap 14 holds the agitator 12 in place. The shaft 13 is mounted in a bearing 15, which also provides a watertight seal between the shaft 13 and the tub 11. A centrifugal basket 16 has a support shaft 17 with a shoulder 18 which runs on a bearing 20 which in turn sits on the shaft 13. An upper bearing 21 and a lower bearing 22 support the centrifugal basket 16 laterally and Borrow for coaxial alignment of the concentric shafts 13 and 17. A drain 41 is used to drain water the tub 11. At the bottom of the tub 11, a bracket 23 is attached which holds a stator 24 for a linear motor. The rotor 27, which together with the stator 24 forms the linear motor, is attached to an arm 26, which in turn is attached to the Shaft 13 is fastened.

A magnetically controlled magnetic reed switch 42 is in such a position on the housing 10 by means of an arm 43 held that it has a distance to magnets 44 and 45, which sit on the rotor 27, but these come very close when the rotor turns. The magnets 44 and 45 are arranged

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brings that the north pole of one magnet and the south pole of the other magnet point upwards. When the rotor rotates counterclockwise, the magnet 44 approaches the reed switch 42 and causes this to change the direction of the Reverse motor; practically at the same time strikes a rebound rod 31 against a stop 33, whereby it the direction of rotation stops quickly and causes a rebound movement in the opposite direction. The reed switch 42 remains in this position and lets the motor rotate clockwise until the magnet 45 approaches the reed switch, whereupon another reversal takes place.

On the shaft 13, a collar 30 is wedged in the usual way for common rotation. The resilient rebound bar 31 is constructed of flexible steel or other flexible material, attached to the collar 30 and oriented to strike the rigid stops 32 and 33 when the shaft 17 of the sole oar basket and the shaft 13 of the agitator move relative to one another . In the illustrated embodiment, the rebound member is in the form of a bar, there are sorted but other arrangements useful; for example, the rebound element 31 could be a ridge-like rib and a resilient cushion or a compression spring could be attached to the stops 32 and 33. As can be seen, there is no physical connection between the shaft 13 of the agitator and the spin basket 16 and the resilient rebound bar 31 moves freely between the stops 32 and 33 and is adjusted so that there is physical contact between it and the stops during the wash cycle 32 and 33 essentially limited to the time of impact «,

The elastic rebound rod 31 has enough flexibility or elasticity to bounce back from the stops 32 or 33 during the washing process, but it is sufficient firm and rigid to hold the basket 16 during the spinning

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• 3 *

To drive the process. During the spin cycle, the The control switch is disabled and the motor does not reverse when the rebound bar 31 hits the stop 32 or 33 hits. Rather, the rebound rod 31 quickly settles against the stop 32 after an initial deflection or 33 and drives spin basket 15 during the high speed spin or extraction cycle at.

In the mode of operation described so far, the spin basket 16 can rotate freely, which he does during the washing or Stirring cycle does. If desired, a magnetically controlled brake, as indicated at 50, can be provided around the centrifugal basket 16 during the wash cycle. An arm 51 connects the brake 50 to the tub 11 and a shaft 52 protrudes through the tub 11, with a waterproof Diohtung 53 prevents a drainage core. A stop engages at the start of the stirring cycle 54 into a recess 55 on the centrifugal basket 16 and hold it in place. Is drawn in during the spin cycle Solenoid 50 pushes the stop 54 back out of the recess 55 and the centrifugal basket 16 can rotate freely.

The individual positions of the stops 32 and 33 can be changed in order to provide different angular distances, which the rebound bar must go through. Furthermore can more than one rebound bar 31 can be used and each Rebound bar can have a different elasticity. These easy-to-make changes come in conjunction with the option of working with a locked or freely rotating centrifugal basket, a wide variety of mixer combinations. The result is a washing machine that can be used for all types of fabric while delivering high washing power, which is achieved by stirring with immediate impact and rebound.

A new washing machine is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. That

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The housing 70 of this machine has a base 72 on which a tub 71 is placed in a recess 81 on a bearing surface 73 is rotatably supported, which is preferably made of Teflon or another material on the market that forms a surface with a low coefficient of friction. The tub 71 can also be on another, more common one Way to be supported. On the inside of the tub 71, side ribs 74 and bottom ribs 76 are rigidly attached or integrally formed, which serve to stir the contents of the tub 71.

A rotor 77 and a stator 78 form a linear motor, the stator 78 being fastened to the housing 70 by means of an arm 80 while the rotor 77 is fixed to the tub 71 and drives it. On the outside of the tub 71 are rigid stops 82, 85 »84 and 85 attached, those made of steel or other suitable material. A curved, resilient rebound bar 90 made of steel or a other to the correct extent elastic or flexible material is adjustable with the aid of fastening parts 92, 91 and 93 attached to the housing 70. The upper end 94 of the rebound bar 90 is received horizontally in a U-iron 93, so that the Rotation of the rod about its vertical axis 100 is limited. The lower end 101 of the rebound bar 90 is horizontal and arranged in such a position that it encounters stops 82, 83, 84 or 85 when the. Vat 71 rotates. A Solenoid 95 actuates an actuator arm 98, which lifts a collar 96 on which a pin 97 of the rebound bar rests lowers. The pin 97 is loosely attached to the rebound bar 90, and by this arrangement, the rebound bar 90 becomes raised and lowered by the actuating arm 95. As a result, the rebound bar 90 is adjusted so that it during the Washing process against one or more of the stops 82, 83, 84 and 85, and then adjusted so that they during does not come into contact with any of the rotating stops 82, 83, 84 and 85 during the spinning process. The number of different

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Licher combinations can be increased by adds another or more rebound bars. These additional rebound bars can have different dimensions of elasticity in order to increase the number of stirring combinations even further.

A magnetically controlled magnetic reed switch 99 is mounted in such a location that magnets 107 and 108 get very close to it as the vat 71 rotates. The magnets 107 and 108 are attached to the tub 71 that the magnetic north pole of 107 and the magnetic south pole of 108 face the reed switch 99. If the When the tub 71 rotates clockwise, the magnet approaches the reed switch 99 and causes this to change the direction of movement of the motor to reverse. Practically at the same time, the stop 83 meets the rebound bar 101, which quickly stops the clockwise rotation and initiates a counterclockwise rebound movement. The tub 71 continues to be driven in the new direction until the magnet 108 approaches the reed switch 99 and a next reversal takes place. If you adjust the rebound bar 101 so that it does not have any of the stops 82, 83, 84 or 85, the motor alone will of course reverse the vat 71 · This gives a much smoother one Washing performance that can be desirable for washing delicate fabrics.

In the example described, the rebound bar 90 is adjustably attached to the housing and the rigid stops 82, 83, 84 and 85 are attached to the tub} of course, the position of the rebound bar and the stops can be interchanged will. The elastic rebound bar can thus be attached to the tub 71 and the rigid stops can be attached to the housing 70, which or these are adjustable so that the combination is oriented such that it meets while washing, but is so changeable, that they run past each other as they spin. Again can

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it can be seen that these parts are in such a position during the wash cycle that their physical contact is practically on the period between the time of the collision and the time of the rebound of the tub "is limited. Instead of the rod, other means can be used to achieve the rebound effect.

The tub or spin basket 71 is provided with a bottom 104 and sloping side walls 102 which are practically concentric lie around the axis of rotation 103 of the basket · While the conventional spin basket has perforated walls, the Spin basket 71 is limited to holes 77a located on a perimeter near the top 105 of side wall 102 are. The side wall 102 runs downwards obliquely inwards towards the center of the basket 71, so that all in the spinning Basket 71 liquid present is propelled by centrifugal action upward and through the holes 77a to the outside.

The housing 70 has sides 106 and a bottom 72. The bottom 72 is provided with a drain 88, <3 is dimensioned so that the liquid is drained from the housing 70 at a lower drainage rate by gravity than the maximum The flow rate at which the liquid in the centrifugal basket 71 passes through the holes 77a is extracted, so when the spin basket 71 is filled and the spin cycle is started, the initial flow of water from basket 71 is greater than that Drainage through drain pipe 88 due to gravity; the result is an accumulation of water in the housing 70. Ribs 86, which are attached to the outer surface of the tub 71, serve as braking means by being with it accumulated water come into contact and create drag. The ribs 86 can remove the accumulated water put in a corresponding rotational movement, whereby the frictional effect between the ribs 86 and the accumulated Water is reduced. This is undesirable and therefore

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.sind 72 further ribs on the inner wall of the housing base 87 attached, which have a stabilizing effect on the liquid accumulated in the housing.

In Fig.5 an electrical circuit is shown, which is suitable for suitable for use in the rebound assisted inversion system. The magnetically controlled magnetic reed switch 99 used in this circuit represents a bistable magnetically controlled switch, for example a Gordos (Trade Mark) model MR 200-2. The tongue 99a of the switch 99 is controlled by a first control means in the form of magnets 107 and 108, which are held on the tub 71 (Figure 4), in one or the other switch position switched. These magnets move tongue 99a back and forth against contacts 99b and 99c when the vat swings back and forth, alternately closing the circuits connected to these contacts. A second Control means in the form of a magnet 99m hold the tongue 99a in place as soon as the contact is closed, until the force of the first control means then switches the tongue to the other contact.

In the context of the invention, it is of course also possible to use a different switch mechanism which produces the same result. For example, a simple magnetic reed switch with two contacts together with an RS flip-flop and suitable signal conditioners, such as Schmitt triggers (not shown), can produce the same results. The remainder of the control circuitry shown, shown at 110, includes a semiconductor switch 111 with control grid for each circuit, commonly sold by General Electric under the trade designation "TRIAC ¹¹ , and a current limiting resistor 112. A reversible electric motor produced by conventional design is shown in the circuit at 113. An alternating current is applied to terminals A and B to complete the circuit.

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In fig.6 are two examples of equivalent versions of the Stops are shown attached to a tub 115 and come into contact with a rebound bar 116 corresponding to the The tub 71 and the rebound bar 90 are the same. The attack 120 has a coil spring 121 attached to it, and on the stop 122 is a rubber buffer 123, each attached to the leading sides. These two Elements mitigate the shock in the event of abrupt contact of the relevant stop with the rebound bar 116.

Changes to the examples described are possible within the scope of the invention, insofar as these are indicated by the appended Claims are covered.

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Claims (1)

Expectations 1. Washing machine with a housing which contains a container for receiving the laundry, which can perform a rotating and oscillating movement, and with a JSm sweeping motor and a drive connection from the motor to the container, characterized by a) stops (82-85) which are either rigidly attached to the housing (70) or to the container (71), b) an elastic rebound element (90), which is attached to the respective the other part (housing or container) is attached in such a position that it is at least during the oscillating movement of the container strikes the stops, and c) a switching mechanism (99, 107, 108) that controls the drive direction of the motor (77, 78) reverses at substantially the same time that the resilient rebound member bumps against the attacks. 2. Washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the elastic rebound element is a flexible rebound rod (90) and that the stops (82-85) are resilient parts. 3. Washing machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the reversing motor is a linear motor, the at least a stator (78) and at least one rotor (77), which between the housing (70) and the container (71) are arranged in functional connection with each other 4. Washing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized characterized in that the container (71) contains an agitator (74, 76) which is fixed inside the container, and has a side wall (102) sloping upwardly and outwardly to and closest to the central axis (103) of the container 509885/0412 their upper edge is provided with holes (77a) along the circumference is that on the outside of the container braking elements (86) are attached, which are arranged so that they have a drag in the housing Generate accumulating liquid that further in the housing ribs (87) are attached, which have a stabilizing effect exert on any amount of liquid collecting in the housing, and that in the housing a Drain (88) of such a dimension is provided that the liquid from the housing only with a smaller Amount per unit of time can flow off as a maximum of liquid in the unit of time by centrifugal action the container is pulled through the holes (77a). Washing machine with a rotating spin basket and its own washing agitator, the two shafts of which are concentric are, and with a linear motor, which has at least one stator and at least one moving rotor element, which is connected to the shaft of the agitator, characterized by a) stops (32, 33) j set on the centrifugal basket (16) are j b) an elastic rebound element (31) which is attached to the shaft (13) of the agitator (12) and is in position the spin basket (16) during the spin cycle to drive, which is also oriented so that it abuts against the stops (32, 33) when the slingshot basket (16) and the agitator (12) relative to each other rotate, and has such a position that the physical contact with the stops substantially during the wash cycle is limited to the time at which the stops (32, 33) with the elastic rebound element (31) meet, c) a switching mechanism (42, 44, 45) for reversing the Drive direction of the linear motor (24, 27) too practical 509885/0412 the same time during the wash cycle that the elastic rebound element strikes against the stops. 6. Washing machine according to claim 5, characterized in that the elastic rebound element is a flexible rebound rod (31) and that the stops are resilient parts. 7. Washing machine, characterized by a) a tub (71) with a side wall (102) practically concentric to the container axis (1), a base and an internal agitator (74, 76) that is rigidly attached to the vat, b) a reversible motor (77, 78) in driving connection with the vat is and turns the vat, c) a housing (70) with side walls and a base (72), in which the tub is rotatably supported, d) a device for reversing the direction of rotation of the tub during the washing process, both on the tub and is attached to the housing and rigidly mounted stops (82-85) and an elastic rebound element (90) which are aligned with one another in such a way that they meet during the washing process, but can be moved into such a position that they during during the spinning process do not come into contact with each other, and they are in such a position to each other, that their physical contact during the washing process is practically limited to the time between the time of the Encounter and the time of the rebound of the vat is limited, and e) a switching mechanism (99, 107, 108) for reversing the drive direction of the motor during the washing process at substantially the same time that the resilient rebound element strikes the stops. 8. Washing machine according to claim 7, characterized by a) holes (77a), which near the upper edge in the tub side 509885/0412 ten wall (102) are arranged all around, b) an inclination of the side wall (102) of the tub at the bottom and inside towards the center, so that the liquid in the tub through the spinning process Centrifugal force is propelled up and out through the holes, c) a drain (88) in the housing, which is dimensioned such that it only with the liquid from the housing at a lower rate than the maximum amount of liquid in the tub by centrifugal force the holes are extracted, d) braking means (86) mounted on the outer surface of the tub in a position such that it generates a drag with any amount of liquid that has accumulated in the housing, wherein this drag provides a braking force on the vat, and e) ribs (87) which are attached to the inner surface of the housing so that they have a stabilizing effect exercise the liquid accumulated in the housing, if any. 9 · Washing machine according to claim 8, characterized in that the reversing motor (77, 78) is a linear motor which at least a stator (78) and at least one moving rotor element (77), the rotor element on the tub (71) is attached. 10. Washing machine according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterized characterized in that the elastic rebound element (90) is adjustably supported on the housing (70) and that the rigidly attached stops (82-85) are attached to the tub (71). 11. Washing machine according to one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that the elastic rebound element (116) is a flexible rebound bar and that the stops 509885/0412 253069Q (120, 122) are resilient elements. 509885 / QA12 Blank