EP0713937A1 - Iron soleplate - Google Patents

Abstract

The domestic laundry iron, with or without a steamer, has a sole (1) of one material (5) with a low friction coefficient at least at the inner surface zone, with resistance to wear, giving a good sliding and cleaning action. A second material (6) covers at least part of the contour (4c), to form an edge which is a buffer against impact. The sole material (5) is an Al or Ti alloy, and the second material (6) is of stainless steel or ceramics.

Description

The present invention relates to the general technical field of devices designed to ensure the shaping of a textile article such as a garment, by subjecting it to the combined action of a heat treatment, a mechanical ironing treatment. and possibly a steam treatment.

The present invention relates to an iron comprising a heating body, a soleplate associated with the heating body, a heating circuit, associated or not with a vaporization chamber.

In the irons of the prior art, the thermal energy transmitted to the ironing sole is conventionally provided by heating elements such as tubular heating elements or also by heating elements of the flat type including a resistive track. In this latter case, the resistive track forms a heating circuit defining a heating zone on the ironing sole, said track being inserted between two films of electrical insulator adhering against each other and also holding the track in place. resistive. In either case, it is important to maintain or control the temperature of the soleplate below a set temperature. To this end, it is conventional to use regulation means or temperature sensors, for example a thermostat, arranged in the iron in thermal relation with the heating element.

The present invention relates to the soles of such irons, more particularly at the outer surface thereof intended to be in contact with the laundry.

The iron soles currently on the market are conventionally produced from an aluminum alloy foundry piece constituting the body. heater, comprising the heating element and whose outer surface intended to be in contact with the linen is emery and / or polished. This relatively old solution tends to disappear because it gives poor sliding performance and ease of maintenance.

It is also known, according to a more recent technique, to produce stainless steel soles which offer good resistance to wear and impact, in particular edges, but average sliding performance on the linen.

Aluminum or enameled copper soles have also been proposed, having good sliding performance and ease of maintenance. On the other hand, for such soles, the resistance to wear and impact, in particular of the edges, is clearly less good than in the aforementioned case of stainless steel.

There are also known embodiments consisting in using aluminum soles which have undergone surface treatments. However, in this case, it is the lifetime linked to the wear of the surface treatment which is most often called into question.

According to a different technique, it is known to produce a sole, always from a foundry piece, most often of aluminum, to which is attached by various means, in particular by screwing, a plate or a cap intended to be in contact with Laundry. As before, this plate or cap can be coated, as desired, with chrome, enamel, or even be made of stainless steel or from an aluminum-stainless steel laminate.

The disadvantage of the various techniques which have just been listed is that they lead to putting the linen in contact with a mono-material surface, therefore forcing the designer to favor a characteristic of the sole, for example gliding, without it can optimize other equally important mechanical characteristics such as for example the mechanical shock resistance of the leading edge of the sole.

Consequently, the object of the invention is to produce an iron soleplate by combining at least two materials in such a way that the advantages of each are combined according to the optimal characteristics sought for each zone of the soleplate.

In particular, its object is to produce a sole of which the material of the lower surface, in particular the central portion of the sole, is selected so as to favor above all the gliding and cleanability, the leading edge or edges of said sole being made of a material favoring above all impact resistance.

Another object of the invention consists in making a sole whose ironing characteristics are improved.

• un premier matériau à faible coefficient de frottement recouvrant au moins en partie sa surface inférieure et possédant des caractéristiques mécaniques lui conférant des qualités de résistance à l'usure, de glisse et de nettoyabilité,
• un second matériau recouvrant au moins une partie de son contour de façon à former un élément de bordure et possédant des caractéristiques mécaniques lui conférant des qualités de résistance aux chocs.

To this end, the invention relates to an iron comprising a heating body, a soleplate, associated with the heating body, a heating circuit, associated or not with a vaporization chamber, characterized in that the soleplate is constituted by :

• a first material with a low coefficient of friction covering at least partially its lower surface and having mechanical characteristics giving it qualities of resistance to wear, of sliding and of cleanability,
• a second material covering at least part of its contour so as to form an edge element and having mechanical characteristics giving it qualities of impact resistance.

According to an example of application, the sole is made from two materials: enameled aluminum and stainless steel. The edges of the sole are made of stainless steel and the substantially central portion of the sole is made of aluminum, preferably enameled.

Thus formed, the sole has better resistance, especially when deposits on the iron rest, because experience has shown that the edges are the most exposed. The substantially central portion of the enameled sole retains its properties of good sliding ability.

• la figure 1 représente une vue en plan d'une semelle selon un premier mode de réalisation de l'invention;
• la figure 2 est une vue en coupe à échelle agrandie selon la coupe II-II de la figure 1;
• la figure 3 représente une vue en plan d'une semelle selon un second mode de réalisation de l'invention;
• la figure 4 est une vue en coupe à échelle agrandie selon la coupe IV-IV de la figure 3;
• les figures 5 et 6 représentent une troisième forme d'exécution de la semelle où la bande de renfort est fixée par frappe à froid;
• les figures 5A et 6A correspondent à des sections partielles desdites semelles;
• la figure 7 représente une vue agrandie du point d'interpénétration des deux matériaux de la figure 6A.

The present invention also relates to the characteristics which will emerge during the description which follows and which should be considered in isolation or according to all their possible technical combinations. This description, given by way of nonlimiting examples, will make it easier to understand how the invention can be produced with reference to the attached drawings in which:

• Figure 1 shows a plan view of a sole according to a first embodiment of the invention;
• Figure 2 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale according to section II-II of Figure 1;
• FIG. 3 represents a plan view of a sole according to a second embodiment of the invention;
• Figure 4 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale according to section IV-IV of Figure 3;
• Figures 5 and 6 show a third embodiment of the sole where the reinforcing strip is fixed by cold striking;
• FIGS. 5A and 6A correspond to partial sections of said soles;
• FIG. 7 represents an enlarged view of the point of interpenetration of the two materials of FIG. 6A.

Figures 1 and 2 illustrate a first preferred embodiment of the iron according to the invention, comprising a vaporization chamber (not shown). Chimneys 3 formed in a heating body 4 ensure the delivery of steam from the chamber to the vaporization orifices 2.

The characteristics relating to the sole with reinforced edges according to the invention are described below. It goes without saying that these characteristics also apply to a dry iron.

According to the basic characteristic of the invention, the sole is generally made up of a first material with a low coefficient of friction covering at least in part its lower surface and having characteristics such as to give it qualities of resistance to wear, but especially gliding and cleanability.

A second material covers at least a lateral and / or lower part of its contour 4c and has characteristics which give it qualities of impact resistance.

In Figures 1 and 2, we can see the inner part 4a of the heating body 4. This is most often made by molding a light alloy such as aluminum. On the flat lower surface 4b of the part 4a, there is added a plate 5 with a low coefficient of friction, preferably occupying the largest portion of the sole, in particular of its substantially central part, the contour 4c of the lower part 4a of the said body heater 4 being at least partially covered by an edge element 6.

According to the preferred embodiment of Figures 1 and 2, the edge element 6 covers on the one hand the lower part of the edge 4c, thus forming the lower edge of the sole 6a; on the other hand, the rim 6 has an extension 6b folded so as to also cover at least a portion of the lateral edge of the sole.

In the example illustrated, the side edge 6b is formed by an extension of the lower edge of the sole 6a folded so as to extend substantially vertically along the contour 4c. It is understood that the inclination and the height of this portion 6b can vary according to the construction of the iron. It is the same for the width of the portion 6a. According to simplified variants, provision is made to limit the reinforced sole in a first case to the single portion 6a; in a second case, to the single portion 6b.

In this exemplary embodiment (FIG. 1), the border element 6 is arranged in the zone of the toe 7 of the sole 1. However, the border element 6 can be placed both in the zone of the toe 7 and / or in the zone of the heel 8 of said sole, and / or in any other portion advantageous contour of the sole, according to the desired characteristics.

It can also be provided that the border element 6 surrounds the entire outline of this sole.

Furthermore, the border element 6 is fixed to the tip 7 and / or the heel 8 of the lower part 4a of the heating body 4, on the one hand by bonding C of the lower border 6a against the lower surface 4b of said body 4 and on the other hand by fixing lugs 9 punctually coming from said rim 6 and able to penetrate into housings 10 of the lower part 4a of the heating body 4 to be immobilized there by twisting.

Bonding is preferably carried out by means of a silicone adhesive.

The second variant shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 differs essentially from the previous one in that the border element 6A is formed from a strip, shaped to form a U-shaped section profile, closed on itself and advantageously arranged over the entire contour of the lower part 4a of the heating body 4 to grip it fixedly by peripheral crimping. Of course other types of section could be considered.

In order to perfect the fixing, at least one of the branches 11, 12 of the U of the profile constituting the border element 6A, preferably, the lower branch 12, is bonded to the lower surface 4b of the heating body 4 with which it is in contact so as to strengthen its fixation.

Here again it will be a silicone adhesive C. It is obvious that the adhesive can also surround the entire internal surface of the U formed by the border element 6A.

In addition, in the case of an iron comprising a vaporization chamber, the low friction coefficient plate 5 is obtained by cutting out a selected material, on which are provided vaporization orifices 2 intended furthermore to ensure fixing. by crimping, of known type, said plate 5 into corresponding holes 13 in the lower part 4a of the heating body 4.

This fixing can be reinforced here again by association of a silicone adhesive C interposed between the plate 5 and the heating body 4.

Although in the various embodiments described so far, the fixing of the various elements of the sole is most often carried out by gluing, it is possible, according to various variants, to fix the sole plate 5 and / or the border element 6 by other means of known types, associated or not with bonding, such as by screwing, riveting, crimping, overmolding, welding, etc. Furthermore, in these embodiments, it is possible to use other types of material than those presented so far. Thus, for example, the border element 6 can be manufactured from another type of metallic alloy, such as for example titanium, or from a non-metallic material, such as for example a material of the type ceramic.

According to the successive exemplary embodiments presented in FIGS. 5 and 6, the method of fixing the edge 6 differs slightly. In FIG. 5, the plate 5 with a low coefficient of friction preferably has a side flange folded upwards. Furthermore, unlike the previous embodiment, this plate advantageously occupies an area corresponding substantially to the entire surface of the sole.

The assembly of the edge 6 having good impact resistance characteristics is preferably obtained by stamping or cold stamping under high pressure of the plate 6 of relatively hard material against the plate 5 of material softer to ensure their connection by interpenetration of materials; the softer material 5 penetrating into the openings 14 provided in the harder material 6, as shown in FIG. 7. Other modes of assembling conferring similar results, such as for example hot stamping, can also be considered.

As can be seen in this figure, the effect of cold pressing is twofold: there is both penetration of the hard material 6 into the soft material 5 and creep of the soft material which comes to fill the orifices 14 provided in the hard material . This filling effect, comparable to the installation of a rivet, provides a rigid and durable support. On this method of attachment, it is advantageous to provide a multiplicity of orifices 14 distributed in a given arrangement on the surface of the lower edge of the sole 6a. The arrangement or distribution of the orifices can vary according to an infinite number of possibilities, depending on the shape of the border 6a, the number of openings 14, their shape, their size, etc. In the example presented, the openings are circular. According to various variants, these openings can take a multitude of forms, according to the imagination of the designer. This allows for a design that is both functional and aesthetic, the distribution can even be used to provide certain visual, decorative effects, or to reproduce certain geometric shapes, patterns, lettering or other. The dimensional limits are very variable, depending on the configuration, the materials used, the impact pressure, etc. The penetration space must be large enough to allow the creep of the soft material, without however using excessive dimensions, which would risk making mechanical connection between the two materials difficult.

Furthermore, it should be noted that this method of fixing the strip 6 by interpenetration of the materials makes it possible to obtain an edge effect due to the presence of the micro-edges 15 situated at the junction of the two materials, at the periphery of the openings 14. It has been found that the presence of these micro-edges 15 has a beneficial effect on ironing.

In a nonlimiting manner in the choice of materials, the plate 5 with a low coefficient of friction is obtained by cutting a sheet of aluminum, preferably enameled, while the border element 6 is preferably made of stainless steel. The plate 5 and / or the border element 6 can obviously be made from other types of material. Thus, for example, the border element 6 can be made of titanium alloy.

Figure 6 illustrates a variant of this latter embodiment where the plate 5 is replaced by the body 4 whose lower surface 4 'is shaped to play the role of the plate 5 of the previous embodiment. The plate 5 is therefore in fact replaced by the lower surface 4 ′ of the body 4. The material used must obviously lend itself to cold stamping, and meet the gliding and cleanability requirements desired for the central portion of the sole.

According to other variants not illustrated, it is planned to build a sole with reinforced edges according to the invention, part of the strip 6 is provided in a given material, at least another part being made of at least one other material.

Finally, it is interesting to note that the percentage of the part covered with relatively hard materials compared to the relatively softer materials can vary freely in particular according to economic, aesthetic, mechanical, etc. considerations.

In the parts covered by the relatively hard material, the percentage of relatively soft material flush through the openings used for the attachment can vary considerably, but is generally between 5% and 40%, and preferably around 20%. .

Claims (21)

Iron comprising a heating body (4), a sole (1), associated with the heating body, a heating circuit, associated or not with a vaporization chamber, characterized in that the sole (1) consists of : - a first material (5; 4 ') with a low coefficient of friction covering at least in part its lower surface and having mechanical characteristics giving it qualities of resistance to wear, of sliding and of cleanability, - A second material (6) covering at least part of its outline (4c) so as to form an edge element and having mechanical characteristics giving it qualities of impact resistance. Iron according to claim 1, in which the soleplate (1) is attached and fixed against the lower surface (4b) of the lower part (4a) of the heating body. Iron according to claim 1, in which the portion of the sole made of first material (4 ') is shaped in the lower portion of the heating body (4). Iron according to one of the preceding claims, in which the first material (4 ′; 5) occupies the largest portion of the sole (1), in particular of its substantially central part. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 4, in which the border element (6) covers at least a portion of the lower part of the edge (4c) so as to form a lower border (6a) of the sole and / or at least a portion of the lateral part of the edge (4c) so as to form a lateral border (6b). Iron according to one of Claims 1 to 5, in which the border element (6) is arranged in the region of the toe (7) of the sole and / or in the region of heel (8) of the iron. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 5, in which the border element (6) is arranged over the entire periphery of the sole. Iron according to one of the preceding claims, in which the border element (6) is fixed to the edge (4c) of the lower part (4a) of the heating body (4) on the one hand by gluing (C) of the lower edge (6a) of the sole and on the other hand by fixing lugs (9) punctually coming from said rim (6) and able to penetrate housings (10) of the lower part (4a) of the body of heater (4) to be immobilized by twisting. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 4, in which the border element (6A) is formed from a strip shaped to form a profile of given section, in particular in the shape of a U, closed over it -same and disposed on at least a portion of the periphery of the lower part (4a) of the heating body (4) to grip it fixedly by peripheral crimping. Iron according to claim 9, in which at least one of the branches (11, 12) of the profile constituting the border element (6A), preferably the lower one (12) is bonded to the lower surface (4b) of the heating body. (4) with which it is in contact, so as to strengthen its fixation. Iron according to one of the preceding claims, in which the border element (6; 6A) is fixed by a mechanical fixing method such as screwing, riveting, crimping, overmolding, welding, associated or not with bonding. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 4, in which the assembly of the edge element (6) is obtained in particular by stamping or cold stamping under high pressure of said element (6) of relatively hard material against the plate ( 4 '; 5) in softer material to ensure their connection by interpenetration of materials ; the softer material (4 '; 5) penetrating into the openings (14) provided in the harder material (6). Iron according to claim 12, in which the effect of cold pressing is such that it provides both penetration of the hard material (6) into the soft material (4 '; 5) and creep of the soft material which fills the holes (14) provided in the hard material. Iron according to one of claims 12 or 13, in which a multiplicity of orifices (14) are distributed in a given arrangement on the surface of the lower edge of the sole (6a). Iron according to one of claims 12 to 14, in which the arrangement of the openings (14) provides certain visual or decorative effects, or makes it possible to reproduce certain geometric shapes, patterns, lettering or the like. Iron according to one of claims 12 to 15, in which the openings (14) have any shape, in particular circular. Iron according to one of claims 12 to 15, in which micro-edges (15) are formed at the junction of the two materials, at the periphery of the openings (14). Iron according to one of claims 1 to 17, in which the plate (4 '; 5) made of first material is made of aluminum alloy, in particular enameled aluminum. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 17, in which the plate (4 '; 5) made of first material is made of titanium alloy. Iron according to one of claims 1 to 17, in which the second element material (6) is stainless steel. Iron according to one of claims 12 to 17, in which the second material element (6) is made of non-metallic material, in particular of ceramic type material.

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