Classifications

• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E05—LOCKS; KEYS; WINDOW OR DOOR FITTINGS; SAFES
  • E05B—LOCKS; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR; HANDCUFFS
  • E05B47/00—Operating or controlling locks or other fastening devices by electric or magnetic means
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
  • D06F37/00—Details specific to washing machines covered by groups D06F21/00 - D06F25/00
  • D06F37/42—Safety arrangements, e.g. for stopping rotation of the receptacle upon opening of the casing door
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
  • D06F39/00—Details of washing machines not specific to a single type of machines covered by groups D06F9/00 - D06F27/00 
  • D06F39/12—Casings; Tubs
  • D06F39/14—Doors or covers; Securing means therefor
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T70/00—Locks
  • Y10T70/60—Systems
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T70/00—Locks
  • Y10T70/60—Systems
  • Y10T70/625—Operation and control
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T70/00—Locks
  • Y10T70/60—Systems
  • Y10T70/625—Operation and control
  • Y10T70/675—Serially operable
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T70/00—Locks
  • Y10T70/70—Operating mechanism
  • Y10T70/7051—Using a powered device [e.g., motor]
  • Y10T70/7062—Electrical type [e.g., solenoid]

Definitions

• the invention relates to a circuit arrangement for locking and / or unlocking a door lock, in particular in an electric domestic appliance having a lock door for locking or releasing a work area, with an electrically controllable door lock actuating device which, upon a current flowing through it, on a Door lock locking or unlocking locking element acts.
• an electrical domestic appliance such as an electrical washing machine
• such an electrically controllable door lock is generally combined with a mechanically actuated door lock with which a locking door is provided for locking or releasing the working area of the domestic appliance in question.
• the electrically controllable door lock acts on the mechanically operated door lock after it has been activated in such a way that it can then no longer be actuated until the electrically controlled door lock is either reactivated or deactivated again.
• a device for locking the door of a washing machine or dishwasher is also known (DE 196 01 228 A1), in which a locking body is provided which can be moved into an open position in which it releases a door hook of the door for a door opening, and which can be moved into a closed position in which it prevents the door hook from opening.
• Locking and unlocking positions of the locking body can be controlled by means of a bistably prestressed element and a locking bolt.
• the mentioned locking bolt can be moved into engagement by the bistable element with the locking body in order to lock this locking body in a closed position.
• the bistable element also pushes the locking bolt into an open position in which it is free of the locking body.
• the known device in question thus has a bistable element which can be pretensioned in two positions: in one position movement of the locking body from its closed position into its open position is prevented, and in the other position movement of the locking body from its closed position enabled in its open position.
• nothing is specified about any measures for monitoring the functionality of a control device controlling the device in question.
• the object of the invention is to ensure in a circuit arrangement of the type mentioned at the outset that the control device provided for controlling the door lock actuating device is also monitored with regard to its functionality during this actuation, so that it only operates the door lock actuating device when it is operating can control.
• the invention has the advantage that it is ensured in a relatively simple manner that the control device mentioned only closes the door lock actuating device locking and / or unlocking is permitted if it permits the output of the switching signals required for the control of the two switching devices connected in series. If the control device in question is faulty, so that it is no longer able to output at least one of the two output signals on the output side, the required locking and / or unlocking of the door lock can no longer take place and the electrical domestic appliance containing this door lock can therefore not be put into operation. The functionality of the control device is thus also monitored by the emission or non-emission of the output signal or signals mentioned.
• the one switching device is expediently formed by an operating contact of a mechanical relay, and the other switching device is formed by a load path of a semiconductor switch;
• the mechanical relay with its relay winding and the semiconductor switch with a control input can be controlled by the control device, which, based on the particular trigger signals fed to it, output signals to excite the relay winding and thus to close the associated normally open contact of the mechanical relay and to transfer the semiconductor switch to surrendered its conductive state.
• a control input of the semiconductor switch is preferably connected to the output of a pulse control circuit which, when triggered, allows the control device to output at least one control pulse of a fixed duration to the semiconductor switch.
• the control device in question does not control the semiconductor switch mentioned directly, but rather to a certain extent indirectly via the pulse control circuit mentioned.
• This pulse control circuit can, however, only deliver the at least one control pulse of a specified duration to the semiconductor switch mentioned if it is controlled by the control device in question in the prescribed manner.
• the semiconductor switch mentioned is a triac. This results in the advantage of a semiconductor switch that is particularly easy to control and can be used in an alternating current path.
• the normally open contact of the mentioned mechanical relay which is connected to the relevant triac in the series connection mentioned, ensures that this triac is not undesirably caused by so-called overhead ignition (dU / dt ignition) due to occurring when the associated relay winding is activated before the triac is activated Interference pulses (EMC) is converted to the conductive state.
• EMC Interference pulses
• the triac can preferably be controlled by supplying the door lock actuating device of the door lock by means of an alternating voltage by means of a duration of at least one current pulse.
• door lock actuating devices which only tolerate a single pulse with a total duration corresponding to half the period of the AC voltage mentioned, without being damaged or burnt out, for their actuation.
• door lock actuation devices that can be controlled without damage by a plurality of such individual pulses for a considerably longer period.
• the control device when the control device is used in a device which comprises a work area which can be locked or released by the said lock door and has a rotatable drum, the device signals indicating its rotation / non-rotation can be used to emit the trigger signals mentioned.
• This measure has the advantage that a further safety aspect is included in the control of the door lock actuation device.
• the door lock actuation device By taking into account the device signals indicating a rotation / non-rotation of the rotatable drum mentioned, it can be ensured in a relatively simple manner that the door lock actuation device, for example, locks its door lock as soon as any rotation of the drum in question is detected. This then prevents an operator from reaching into the drum which is now blocked by the door lock in question.
• the device signals mentioned above are optionally linked to the output signals that can be output by the control device in a logic device, in particular in an AND logic device, after evaluation in an evaluation device. This ensures in a particularly simple manner that the output signals emitted by the control device are not the only criterion for the effective control of the switching devices mentioned.
• a control circuit which drives this relay coil is preferably arranged between the output of the logic device and the relay coil of the mechanical relay. This has the advantage of a particularly simple control option with regard to the mechanical relay.
• the door lock actuating device is a bistable magnetic lock actuating device containing a magnetic coil, which is locked or unlocked in response to successive actuations of its magnetic coil.
• this circuit arrangement belongs to an electrical domestic appliance, not shown here, such as an electrical washing machine, which has a working area - i.e. a washing drum - which to be locked or released by means of a locking door.
• the above-mentioned washing drum of the washing machine in question is set in rotation by an electric motor M, which is shown schematically in the drawing.
• the electric motor M can be an AC or DC motor; it is controlled by a drive control device AN in order to carry out rotations in accordance with the respective work program.
• Such rotations include e.g. a clockwise and counterclockwise rotation of the motor and thus the washing drum for executing a washing program and a relatively high speed in the case of a spin cycle of the washing machine.
• a so-called tachogenerator T is connected to the electric motor M shown in the drawing, which outputs corresponding output pulses on the output side to the speed of the electric motor M.
• a signal comprising these output pulses is, as will be seen later, fed as a blocking signal via an input line EL1 to a door control device TS, which in the present case includes a microcontroller MC with associated software as the actual control element.
• This microcontroller MC is connected to the input line EL1 with a first input connection, and the microcontroller MC is connected to a further input line EL2 of the door control device TS with a second input connection.
• This further input line EL2 is connected via a so-called door contact TK of the washing machine mentioned to a supply voltage connection carrying a supply voltage U1 of, for example, + 5V.
• the relevant door contact TK is closed when the washing machine's lock door is mechanically closed.
• the supply voltage U1 then subsequently supplied to the microcontroller MC in the door control device TS via the input line EL2 represents a preparatory signal, upon which - as will be seen in more detail below - an electrical locking of the door lock associated with the said locking door can be carried out as soon as the motor M starts to turn.
• the aforementioned microcontroller MC also has two separate outputs which are connected to output lines AL1, AL2 of the door control device TS.
• control device ST in question can be implemented by other components, such as, for example, by a microprocessor with associated peripherals, such as with a ROM memory, in which, among other things, one is used to control the door lock actuating device still to be considered Control program is stored, and with a RAM memory, which can serve as the working memory of the microcomputer comprising the above-mentioned components.
• a microprocessor with associated peripherals such as with a ROM memory, in which, among other things, one is used to control the door lock actuating device still to be considered Control program is stored, and with a RAM memory, which can serve as the working memory of the microcomputer comprising the above-mentioned components.
• one input of a logic circuit VG is connected to the output line AL1 of the door control device TS, which can be formed, for example, by an AND gate UG having two inputs and one output.
• This AND gate UG is connected with its one input to the mentioned output line AL1, and with its other input the relevant AND gate UG of the logic circuit VG is connected to the output of an evaluation circuit AS.
• This evaluation circuit AS has an averaging device MW connected on the input side to the output of the tachogenerator T and a threshold value device SW arranged downstream thereof.
• This threshold value device SW is connected to a threshold value voltage U2, which defines a threshold value, when exceeded by the respective output voltage output by the averaging circuit MW, a certain output signal, for example an output signal corresponding to a logic level "0", is output by the relevant threshold value circuit SW; otherwise the threshold circuit SW may emit an output signal corresponding to a logic level "1".
• the averaging circuit MW can be formed by a circuit for averaging, known per se, from the pulse voltages supplied to it on the input side.
• the threshold circuit SW can be implemented by a known threshold circuit, for example by a single bipolar transistor, the base of which is supplied with an output voltage or output signal of the averaging circuit MW and the emitter of which carries the voltage forming the threshold voltage U2.
• a relay control circuit RS representing a control circuit is connected on the input side.
• a bipolar transistor Q of the npn conductivity type in the collector circuit of which is the relay winding of a mechanical relay RE.
• This relay RE includes a make contact AR, with which the main or load path of a semiconductor switch TR is in series.
• the relevant semiconductor switch TR is formed in the present case by a triac; at this point, however, it should be noted that in principle another semiconductor switch can also be used here and that the normally open contact AR can also be replaced by the main path of a semiconductor switch; in the latter case, the aforementioned relay control circuit will be replaced by a semiconductor switch control circuit.
• the mentioned triac TR is connected with its control electrode to the output of a pulse control circuit IS, which is connected on the input side to the above-mentioned output line AL2 of the door control device TS.
• the above-mentioned electric door lock actuating device or door locking device TV includes a magnet coil SM and a locking element which can be actuated by the latter, with which the door lock, not shown in the drawing, to which the circuit arrangement in question belongs, can be locked or unlocked.
• the door lock actuating device or door locking device TV may be, for example, a bistable door locking device which locks or unlocks the associated door lock in response to successive actuations of the magnet coil SM.
• the door locking device in question may also be formed by a monostable door locking device or by a monostable door unlocking device. In the former case, the monostable door locking device would only lock the associated door lock for the duration of the activation of its associated magnet coil, and in the second case, the monostable door unlocking device would only unlock the associated door lock during the duration of the excitation of the associated magnet coil.
• the tachogenerator T coupled to the electric motor M does not emit any output pulses.
• the microcontroller MC contained in the door control device TS recognizes on the basis of the supply voltage U1 supplied to it via the closed door contact TK that the lock door of the washing machine is mechanically closed and, if appropriate, can be locked electrically. At this time, however, neither the microcontroller MC is supplied with evaluable trigger signals for locking the door lock, not shown in the drawing, via the input line EL or the evaluation circuit AS.
• the door control device TS does not emit any output signals via its output lines AL1 and AL2 that the relay control circuit RS and the pulse control circuit IS are controlled on the input side in each case.
• the normally open contact AR belonging to the mechanical relay RE remains in its rest position, and the triac TR connected to the output of the pulse control circuit IS remains in the blocked state.
• the magnetic coil MS of the door lock actuating device or door locking device TV can therefore not be excited.
• the locking member TU which can be referred to as a door latch, cannot be brought into its locking position.
• the door lock of the lock door of the washing machine which is assumed to be the domestic appliance, is not electrically locked.
• the output pulses emitted by the tachogenerator T coupled to the electric motor M may be sufficient in both amplitude and frequency to be of the evaluation circuit AS continues to supply an output signal corresponding to a logic value "1" to one input of the AND gate UG of the logic circuit VG.
• the output pulses emitted by the tachogenerator T which are fed via the input line EL1 to the door control device TS and in this to the microcontroller MC, may, however, lead to corresponding output signals or pulses, such as output signals or pulses, having a logic value "1" of a certain fixed duration are output via the output lines AL1 and AL2.
• output signals or pulses are preferably first output via the output line AL1 and only after a certain specified period of time has passed via the output line AL2.
• the output signal output via the output line AL1 with the logic level "1" causes the AND gate UG in the logic circuit VG to output an output signal corresponding to the logic value "1" from e.g. + 5V outputs which is fed to the relay control circuit RS on the input side.
• This output signal leads to the transistor Q of the relay control circuit RS becoming conductive, as a result of which the relay RE lying in the collector circuit of the transistor Q is excited with its relay winding. As a result, the normally open contact AR associated with this relay RE is closed.
• the pulse control circuit IS then outputs at least one control pulse of a fixed duration to the control electrode of the triac TR. As already stated at the beginning, this duration depends on the load capacity of the magnetic coil MS of the door lock actuating device or door locking device TV.
• the duration in question can be, for example, half a period of the above-mentioned 50 Hz mains alternating voltage, ie 10 ms.
• a number of individual pulses for example 5 kHz pulses, can also be emitted, in particular for a safe control of the triac. If a door lock actuating device or door locking device TV with a different load capacity of the associated magnet coil MS is used, several individual pulses or even a continuous current signal may also be emitted.
• the series connection of the normally open contact AR of the relay RE and the main section of the triac TR ensures, moreover, that so-called overhead ignition, i.e.
• the door locking device TV which is supposed to be a bistable door lock actuating device or door locking device TV, however, remains in its locked state, in which the lock door of the washing machine provided according to the assumption remains locked.
• the door control device TS and the evaluation circuit AS only become active again when the electric motor M has again reached or falls below a predetermined speed, such as 2min "1.
• the microcontroller MC evaluates the signal now emitted by the tachogenerator T as a release signal for unlocking of the door locking device TV, whereupon on the one hand the link circuit VG can again be controlled accordingly by the door control device TS for controlling the relay control circuit RS and then on the other hand also the pulse control circuit IS can be controlled again by the door control device TS.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Main Body Construction Of Washing Machines And Laundry Dryers (AREA)
• Lock And Its Accessories (AREA)
• Electric Ovens (AREA)
• Power-Operated Mechanisms For Wings (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=37831754

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

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Family Cites Families (15)

• 2005
  • 2005-12-09 DE DE102005058899A patent/DE102005058899A1/de not_active Withdrawn
• 2006
  • 2006-11-23 AT AT06819691T patent/ATE434072T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2006-11-23 KR KR1020087013549A patent/KR20080081151A/ko not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2006-11-23 DE DE200650004036 patent/DE502006004036D1/de active Active
  • 2006-11-23 EA EA200870023A patent/EA200870023A1/ru unknown
  • 2006-11-23 US US12/086,036 patent/US7973431B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2006-11-23 EP EP06819691A patent/EP1960582B1/fr active Active
  • 2006-11-23 WO PCT/EP2006/068792 patent/WO2007065797A1/fr active Application Filing

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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