EP2862494B1 - Water-transporting household device - Google Patents

Description

Field of application and state of the art

The invention relates to a water-conducting household appliance with a water treatment room and with a water guide, in particular a washing machine or dishwasher.

For example, from the DE 102011003464 A1 an impeller pump for such a water-conducting household appliance is known. It is connected by means of pipe connection or hose connection as a water supply to a water treatment room or interior of the household appliance and pumps there water. It can either dispose of the pumped water in a drain or heat it by a built-in heater and lead back into the water treatment room.

The US 3,117,523 A shows a water-conducting household appliance with a water treatment room and at the end of which downwardly arranged pump. This pump is very flat. It pumps the water from the pump chamber laterally into a pipeline, for example, for further use in the household appliance.

The DE 112006002944 T5 shows a washing machine as another water-conducting household appliance with a water treatment room and at the end of which downwardly arranged pump. The pump has a pump chamber with an impeller therein, wherein the impeller is driven by a drive motor arranged underneath. The pump chamber is flat and has a lateral outlet.

Task and solution

The invention has for its object to provide a water-conducting household appliance mentioned above, with the problems of the prior art can be avoided and it is in particular possible to make a water-bearing household appliance practical, small or space as possible and integrated.

This object is achieved by a household appliance with the features of claim 1. Advantageous and preferred embodiments of the invention are the subject of the other claims and are explained in more detail below. The wording of the claims is incorporated herein by express reference.

It is envisaged that the household appliance has a water supply from and / or to the water treatment room. This is just known from a dishwasher or washing machine. Furthermore, the household appliance has an impeller pump or pump in the water supply. This impeller pump has a pump chamber, an impeller or an impeller with a rotation axis in the pump chamber and a drive motor for the impeller.

According to the invention, it is provided that the axis of rotation of the impeller pump extends substantially vertically or perpendicular to a base surface of the household appliance. In essence vertical is to be understood in the following an angle of 80 ° 100 °, preferably 85 ° to 95 °. As a result, an efficient suction of water from the water treatment room or from a sump of the water treatment room is possible. Furthermore, the impeller pump can be provided very close to the water treatment room or with only a small distance. In this case, an inlet, which is, for example, tube-like, opens into the pump chamber directly on an underside or on an outlet from the water treatment space. Thus, it is possible that the impeller pump is located directly below the water treatment room. This reduces the space required and allows for greater integration or a larger trained water treatment room.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is possible that the inlet to the pump chamber may surround the axis of rotation or the axis of rotation of the impeller advantageously passes through the inlet, particularly advantageously centrally through the inlet. Such an inlet may be tubular, in particular circular, and have a small length, here for example from 0.5 cm to 5 cm. The smaller this length or the distance to the bottom of the water treatment room, the closer the impeller pump may be provided on the water treatment room or on its underside or near the swamp to reduce the overall height.

In an advantageous further embodiment of the invention, it is possible that an upper edge of the pump chamber, for example, a maximum of 3 cm to 15 cm below the water treatment room before the bottom or the drain or before the maximum cross section of the water treatment room. Again, this should be a measure of how close the impeller pump is located on the water treatment room. It can also be provided that means are provided on the top of the impeller pump or around the aforementioned inlet for attaching and sealing this attachment to the water treatment room. Thus, it is possible that the pump even directly abuts with an upper side or the upper side of the pump chamber on an underside of the water treatment chamber or on an underside of a sump of the water treatment chamber. A distance may alternatively be 1 cm or less.

A direct concern allows for the aforementioned maximum integration or minimum total height of the arrangement of water treatment room and impeller pump. Furthermore, can be dispensed with intermediate parts between the water treatment room and the impeller pump, so that both the design effort and the assembly costs reduced are. For this purpose, the impeller pump can, for example, have a tubular inlet projecting upwards over the upper side of the pump chamber, as described above. He can just have the aforementioned length. This inlet can then be plugged directly into a corresponding opening on the underside of the water treatment room, advantageously sealed by special sealing means, in particular elastic sealing means. This allows, as it were, an insertion of the impeller pump with its inlet from below into a corresponding outlet opening or drain opening of the water treatment room.

Furthermore, an outlet is provided on the impeller pump, through which the water is conveyed out of the pump chamber. This outlet may advantageously extend in a direction substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation. Since this direction is then substantially parallel to the bottom of the water treatment room, the height of the functional unit water treatment room and impeller pump is further reduced.

An outlet from the pump chamber is provided according to the invention in the lower region of the pump or in the lower region of the pump chamber. It can be arranged, for example, at the axial height of the drive motor. Preferably, the outlet is at the axial height of the lower third of the drive motor. Particularly preferably, the outlet is located in the lowermost region of the pump or forms the lowermost region or the lowest part of the pump.

Advantageously, the water treatment room form a separate unit or consist of such a unit. The same can apply to the pump. If the impeller pump is connected directly and without intermediate parts to the water treatment room or its outlet or a lower depression of the sump, it is advantageous to provide only the abovementioned sealing means which, however, negatively affect neither the size nor the overall height.

Particularly advantageously, the water treatment room has a drain at its lowest point or at a lower depression. On the one hand, this lowermost point can lie relatively centrally to a total cross section of the water treatment space. Alternatively, it may be displaced to one side to allow more convenient positioning of the impeller pump at the bottom of the drain in the home appliance. In the lowest area of the water treatment room, a depression may be provided, with a height of a few cm, for example 0.5 cm to 3 cm. This is enough to collect water and for easy and complete removal.

For a compact design of water treatment room and impeller pump can be provided that a top portion of the impeller at the level of the bottom or the drain of the water treatment room or on the underside of a sump or a lower recess of the water treatment room is arranged. He can also reach just below, for example, to reach a maximum of 2 cm to this bottom.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a heating element or a heating device is provided on or in the pump chamber, as it is known from DE 102011003464 A1 is known. Here, an attachment to an outside or in an outer region of the pump chamber has proven itself. Advantageously, the heating device or the heating element lies approximately at the axial height of the impeller, in particular at the axial height of an outlet from the impeller. Here, the flow rate is greatest and thus the heat loss for the fastest possible heating of pumped through water.

In yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the drive motor can be integrated into the pump or in the pump chamber, according to the invention, it is surrounded at the same axial height of the pump chamber. It may advantageously be a so-called wet runner, he can be lapped in particular of water. The structure of the impeller pump can be such that the drive motor is approximately at the axial height of an outlet from the pump chamber. Thus, the pump housing and thus the entire pump must not be unnecessarily large or high for a low overall height. Rather, it can be built in width, so that its width or a diameter of the pump chamber is greater than the height of the pump or the pump chamber. This can be 10% to 100% larger, possibly even more.

These and other features will become apparent from the claims and from the description and drawings, wherein the individual features each alone or more in the form of sub-combinations in one embodiment of the invention and in other fields be realized and advantageous and protectable Represent embodiments for which protection is claimed here. The subdivision of the application into intermediate headings and individual sections does not limit the general validity of the statements made thereunder.

Brief description of the drawings

Fig. 1

eine schematische Ansicht einer Spülmaschine als erfindungsgemäßes Haushaltsgerät,

Fig. 2

ein vergrößerter Ausschnitt einer einen Sumpf der Spülmaschine aus Fig. 1 bildenden Vertiefung mit Pumpe daran,

Fig. 3

eine Schnittdarstellung durch die Anordnung aus Fig. 2,

Fig. 4

eine schräge Draufsicht auf die Anordnung aus Fig. 2,

Fig. 5

eine Abwandlung der Darstellung aus Fig. 2 ohne Spalt zwischen Unterseite der Vertiefung und Pumpe und

Fig. 6

einen Schnitt durch die Anordnung aus Fig. 5.

Embodiments of the invention are shown schematically in the drawings and are explained in more detail below. In the drawings show:

Fig. 1

a schematic view of a dishwasher as a household appliance according to the invention,

Fig. 2

an enlarged section of a dishwasher one swamp Fig. 1 forming recess with pump on it,

Fig. 3

a sectional view through the arrangement Fig. 2 .

Fig. 4

an oblique top view of the arrangement Fig. 2 .

Fig. 5

a modification of the presentation Fig. 2 without gap between bottom of recess and pump and

Fig. 6

a section through the arrangement Fig. 5 ,

Detailed description of the embodiments

In the Fig. 1 schematically is a dishwasher 11 as a household appliance according to the invention shown with a housing 12 and a washing compartment 14 as a water treatment room therein, which is formed in principle as usual and known. Above in the washing compartment 14, a conventional flushing arm 16 is indicated, of course, even more flushing arms can be provided therein, especially in the lower area. Below, the washing compartment 14 has a bottom 17, which merges into a large recess 18 in the middle, which is funnel-shaped and forms a sump 19 with a previously described sequence. In this case, the recess 18 may also be partially covered, for example by grids, filters or the like. The walls of the washing compartment 14 and the bottom 17 are usually made of metal or stainless steel. The recess 18 in turn may be made of plastic, alternatively also of metal.

At the bottom of the recess 18 is, as from the Fig. 2 can be seen well in magnification, an impeller pump or pump 22, wherein between the pump 22 and its top and the bottom of the recess 18, a gap 21 is. This gap 21 can be a few millimeters be, for example, 0.5 cm. A connection of the pump 22 to the recess 18 advantageously has an in Fig. 3 illustrated seal 36. This is in particular provided between the underside of the recess 18 and an inlet 24. An attachment between the two parts recess 18 and pump 22 may advantageously be done in other ways.

According to Fig. 2 the pump 22 has a pump housing 23 with inlet 24 and outlet 25 of an in Fig. 3 Due to the gap 21, the inlet 24 can be seen in the side view, it is advantageously a short pipe socket. According to Fig. 1 emanates from the outlet 25 a dashed water passage 38, which ultimately leads to the spray arm 16. In between, the water guide 38 may be formed as known from the prior art, ie valves, branches and processes and even more.

From the sectional view of Fig. 3 It can be seen that the pump chamber 26 as the largest region of the outer circumferential wall has an annular circulating heating element 27, which is shown here only very simplified, but for example from the above-mentioned prior art in the form of DE 102011003464 A1 is known. The heating element 27 may be made of metal and have a surface heating by distributed distributed heating means, in particular by externally applied in sheets thick film heating resistors. The top of the pump chamber 26 and a lower portion of the pump housing 23 are advantageously formed of plastic.

In the pump chamber 26, an impeller 28 rotates, which is why the pump 22 is just an impeller pump. The impeller 28 has a curved upper cover plate 29a and a substantially flat lower cover plate 29b. It can be seen that the impeller 28 extends with its uppermost region, namely the upper end of the upper cover plate 29a, up to the level of the underside of the recess 28, in which case the cover plate 29a already has a tubular shape extending upwards.

The impeller 28 has a dashed axis of rotation 30 and sits on a rotary shaft 31. This in turn is fixedly connected to a rotor 33 and this sits on her. The rotor 33 belongs as well as an externally mounted stator 34 to a drive motor 32 for the pump 22. From the Fig. 1 to 3 It can be seen that the axis of rotation 30 of the impeller 28 is substantially perpendicular or at right angles to a standing surface of the dishwasher 11.

Although the exact design of the pump 22 may be as shown here, it need not. In particular, the configuration of the pump chamber 26 with the wide upper portion and the narrow, annular lower portion may also be different. Furthermore, the drive motor 32 does not have to be pulled so far into the pump 22 or the pump chamber 26. The drive motor 32 is designed here as a wet rotor, but may also be designed as a dry runner, as is known in the aforementioned prior art.

Out in the oblique top view Fig. 4 is again good to see that the sump 19 and the recess 18 is arranged as the bottom of the washing chamber 14 so close to the pump 22 and the pump chamber 26 with the impeller 28 that this inclines in the oblique top view together with 24 is seen.

A modification of the invention is in the FIGS. 5 and 6 according to the Fig. 2 and 3 shown. Here, a recess 118 is again formed in a similar funnel-shaped or tapered manner and forms a sump 119 as the lowermost part of a washing compartment, not shown here Fig. 1 , However, the recess 118 could directly to the dishwasher 11 of Fig. 1 be mounted instead of the recess 18 shown there.

At the bottom of the recess 118, a pump 122 is mounted, but this time directly and without the gap. This is especially good from the Fig. 6 to see. The pump 122 is similar to FIG Fig. 3 formed as an impeller pump and has a pump housing 123 with inlet 124 and outlet 125. The inlet 124 is here substantially formed by an opening above the impeller 128. A tubular embodiment according to Fig. 3 is not provided here, but also not necessary due to the direct attachment of the pump 122 to the bottom of the recess 118th

The impeller 128 has an upper cover plate 129a and a lower cover plate 129b. The uppermost region of the impeller 128 or the upper cover disk 129a is in turn approximately at the level of the bottom of the recess 118. Furthermore, the impeller 128 is arranged with a rotation axis 130 shown in dashed lines on a rotary shaft 131 together with the drive motor 132. The drive motor 132 has a rotor 33 and a stator 34. The axis of rotation 130 in turn extends recognizably perpendicular or at right angles to a base of the device in which the arrangement is to be installed.

A seal 136 is according to Fig. 6 provided outside between the recess 118 and its bottom or its bottom and the pump housing 123 and the upper edge of the pump housing or heating element 127. For temperature reasons, a silicone seal is advantageously provided here.

The comparison of Fig. 3 and 6 makes it clear that at the Fig. 6 the integration is even stronger, since recess 118 and pump 122 can actually be formed as a single unit. This allows a common manufacturing and assembly for a higher possible integration as well as for a more easily sealed design.

Above all, it can be seen from the figures that no separate components such as pipes, hoses or the like. between the washing compartment 14 or the recess 18 or 118 or the sump 19 or 119 and the pump 22 or 122 are necessary. This reduces, as I said, the size and allows greater integration, easier-to-seal design and a simpler structure.

Claims (13)

1. Water-bearing household appliance, having a water treatment chamber and having a water duct from and/or to the water treatment chamber (14), in particular dishwasher machine (11) or washing machine, wherein the household appliance has an impeller pump (22, 122) in the water duct, and wherein the impeller pump has a pump chamber (26, 126), an impeller (28, 128) with a rotation axis (30, 130) in the pump chamber and a drive motor (32, 132) for the impeller, wherein the rotation axis extends vertically or perpendicular to a floor space of the household appliance (11), wherein an inlet (24, 124) into the pump chamber (26, 126) is provided, which inlet ends directly on a bottom side (17) or on a drainage (18, 118) from the water treatment chamber (14),
   characterized in that

   - an outlet (25, 125) from the pump chamber (26, 126) is provided in the lower region of the pump (22, 122),

   - the drive motor (32, 132) is located on the axial level of the pump chamber and is surrounded by the pump chamber.
2. Household appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that the inlet (24, 124) surrounds the rotation axis (30, 130), wherein preferably the rotation axis is disposed centrally in the inlet.
3. Household appliance according to claim 2, characterized in that the inlet (24, 124) has a tubular shape and has a length of 0.5 cm to 5 cm.
4. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that an upper edge of the pump chamber (26, 126) is located at a maximum of 3 cm to 15 cm underneath the water treatment chamber (14) before the bottom side (17) or the drainage (18, 118) or before the maximum cross section of the water treatment chamber.
5. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the impeller pump (22, 122) is arranged resting directly with an upper side of the pump chamber (26, 126) on a bottom side (17) of the water treatment chamber (14) or on the bottom side of a liquid pool (19, 119) of the water treatment chamber or with a spacing of less than 1 cm.
6. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that an outlet (25, 125) from the pump chamber (26, 126) extends in a direction essentially at right angles to the rotation axis (30, 130).
7. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the outlet (25, 125) is provided as a lowermost region or lowermost part of the pump (22, 122).
8. Household appliance according to claim 1 or 7, characterized in that the outlet (25, 125) is arranged on the axial level of the drive motor (32, 132), in particular on the axial level of the lower third of the drive motor.
9. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the water treatment chamber (14) is composed of a structural unit and the impeller pump (22, 122) is also composed of a structural unit, wherein the impeller pump is connected directly and without intermediate parts to the water treatment chamber (14) or the drainage (18, 118), preferably using only elastic sealing means.
10. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that a drainage (18, 118) from the water treatment chamber (14) is provided on the lowermost point thereof, preferably within a recess having a height of 0.5 cm to 3 cm.
11. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that an uppermost region of the impeller (28, 128) is arranged on the level of the bottom side (17) of the water treatment chamber (14) or on the bottom side of a liquid pool (19, 119) of the water treatment chamber (14) or just below, preferably at a maximum of 2 cm.
12. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that in or on the pump chamber (26, 126) a heating element (27, 127) is provided, in particular on an outer side of the pump chamber (26, 126) and approximately on the axial level of the impeller (28, 128).
13. Household appliance according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that water of the pump chamber (26, 126) is flowing around the drive motor (32, 132).

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