EP3640395B1 - Steam crease removal device - Google Patents

Description

Technical area

The present invention relates to the field of steam ironing / or smoothing appliances comprising a handle connected to a steam emitting head comprising a treatment face intended to come vertically facing a garment to be straightened and comprising at least a steam outlet.

The invention relates more particularly to an apparatus in which the vapor emitting head comprises a heating body comprising an instantaneous vaporization chamber and an electrical resistance regulated by means of a thermostat to maintain the temperature of the vaporization chamber around a setpoint temperature, the device comprising an electric pump for injecting liquid into the vaporization chamber.

Prior Art

Such a device is for example known from patent applications FR 3 060 027 and ES 2 403 784 A2 .

Such devices provided with an instantaneous vaporization chamber into which water is injected by means of an electric pump have the advantage of offering high vapor flow rates. However, under certain conditions there are discharges of non-vaporized water, in particular after the head has been used by being tilted to the side. In fact, under these conditions a part of the heating element is not in contact with the water so that the thermostat frequently cuts off the heating and the water accumulates rapidly in the vaporization chamber when the power supply is supplied. of the heating element is cut off. Then, when the thermostat closes, the high power supplied by the heating element quickly generates a powerful flow of steam, resulting from the vaporization of part of the water accumulated in the vaporization chamber, which carries with it droplets. of water, resulting from the water accumulated in the vaporization chamber, which are ejected through the vapor outlet holes.

Summary of the invention

The invention which follows aims to overcome these drawbacks by proposing in particular a steamer which produces a high flow of steam and which can be used in all positions, further reducing the risk of water droplets spitting out through the steam outlet.

The object of the invention is achieved by an ironing and / or steam ironing appliance comprising a handle connected to a steam emitting head comprising a treatment face intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be uncreased and comprising at least one steam outlet, the steam emitting head comprising a heating body comprising an instantaneous vaporization chamber and an electrical resistance regulated by means of a thermostat to maintain the temperature of the vaporization chamber around a setpoint temperature, the device comprising an electric pump for injecting liquid into the vaporization chamber, characterized in that the pump is controlled by a control circuit which receives the information relating to the supply state of the electrical resistance by the thermostat and in that the control circuit modifies the operating conditions of the pump according to the supply state of the resistance electric, the pump operating according to a first flow when the electrical resistance is supplied with current and according to a second flow when the electrical resistance is not supplied with current, the second flow being lower than the first flow.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to limit the flow of water injected into the vaporization chamber when the electrical resistance is no longer electrically supplied. This reduces the amount of water sent into the vaporization chamber when the electrical resistance does not provide energy to vaporize the water, which reduces the risk of ejection of water droplets with the steam flow. . Conversely, when the electric resistance is supplied electrically, the available power is taken advantage of to increase the pump flow rate and produce a larger quantity of steam without the risk of water accumulating in the instantaneous vaporization chamber.

By thermostat is meant any regulating device, whether mechanical, electrical or electronic, making it possible to maintain the temperature around a prescribed value.

The pump flow rate is understood to mean the average pump flow rate over time. This flow rate may result either from continuous operation of the pump or from intermittent operation of the pump, obtained for example by chopping its supply over a given period.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the apparatus comprises a button connected to the control circuit of the pump which makes it possible to start and / or stop the pump.

Such a button allows the user to take control of the emission of steam by the device, the user can thus easily stop the emission of steam when the latter is not necessary.

According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the button is a trigger which controls the operation of the pump when it is activated, the release of the trigger causing the pump to stop.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to offer very good ergonomics of use of the device.

According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the second flow rate of the pump is obtained by chopping the supply current of the pump.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to obtain a reduction in the flow rate of the pump in a simple and economical manner.

According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the second flow rate of the pump represents less than 75%, and preferably less than 50%, of the first flow rate of the pump.

Such a flow limitation makes it possible to greatly limit the risk of water accumulation in the vaporization chamber.

According to yet another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the first flow rate is between 20 and 50 g / min.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to obtain very good ironing / smoothing performance using the flow of steam.

According to yet another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the vaporization chamber protrudes in the middle of an enclosure of the heating body, the enclosure defining a distribution circuit around the vaporization chamber. According to yet another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the treatment face is carried by an end plate disposed at a longitudinal end of the head, the handle extending transversely to the head.

According to yet another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the heating body comprises a front face which comes into contact with the end plate, the front face comprising a slot placing the vapor outlet hole of the treatment face in communication with the heating body enclosure.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to thermally couple the treatment face with the heating body in order to maintain the temperature of the treatment face at a temperature above 100 ° C. and to avoid condensation of the vapor thereon.

According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the apparatus comprises a portable housing comprising the head, the handle, the heating body, the pump, the control circuit and a liquid reservoir.

Such a construction allows the production of a compact device with very good vaporization performance.

Brief description of the drawings

• [Fig 1] La figure 1 est une vue en perspective d'un appareil de repassage selon un mode particulier de réalisation de l'invention ;
• [Fig 2] La figure 2 est une autre vue en perspective de l'appareil de la figure 1 démunie d'une partie du boîtier recouvrant la tête de l'appareil ;
• [Fig 3] La figure 3 est une vue en perspective éclatée du corps chauffant équipant l'appareil de la figure 1 ;
• [Fig 4] La figure 4 est une vue de dessus du corps chauffant démuni de son couvercle de fermeture.

The aims, aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the description given below of a particular embodiment of the invention presented by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :

• [ Fig 1 ] The figure 1 is a perspective view of an ironing appliance according to a particular embodiment of the invention;
• [ Fig 2 ] The figure 2 is another perspective view of the apparatus of the figure 1 lacking a part of the housing covering the head of the device;
• [ Fig 3 ] The figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of the heating body fitted to the appliance of the figure 1 ;
• [ Fig 4 ] The figure 4 is a top view of the heating body without its closing cover.

Only the elements necessary for an understanding of the invention have been represented. To facilitate reading of the drawings, the same elements bear the same references from one figure to another.

Description of the embodiments

It will be noted that in this document, the terms "horizontal", "vertical", "lower", "upper", "front", "rear", "bottom," ceiling "used to describe the steaming appliance refer to this unit when it is lying flat on its feet.

The figure 1 shows an ironing appliance comprising a portable plastic housing comprising a base 1 surmounted by a handle 2 and a steam emitting head 3, the base 1 comprising a flat lower face provided with feet on which the apparatus can come to rest stably in a substantially vertical position.

The base 1 of the device comprises an electrical supply cord 11 allowing its connection to a domestic electrical network and the steam emitting head 3 comprises a rear face provided with a button 4, visible on the figure 2 , to turn on the device.

The base 1 contains an electric pump 5, illustrated in dotted lines on the figure 1 , the operation of which is controlled by a control circuit comprising a trigger 52 and an electronic control card 9. The trigger 52 is advantageously disposed at the top of the handle 2 and actuates, in a manner known per se, a switch connected to the control card 9 to control the operation of the pump 5 when the trigger is actuated and to order the stopping of the pump. pump 5 when the trigger 52 is released. The pump 5 is supplied with liquid by a reservoir 10 formed partially in the base 1 and in the lower part of the handle 2, this reservoir 10 being advantageously removable from the device to facilitate its filling.

The steam emitting head 3 has a slender shape extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of the handle 2 and has a longitudinal end provided with a planar end plate 30 having a treatment face 30A intended to come vertically in. look of the garment to be smoothed, this end plate 30 comprising a slot 31 for the emission of a flow of steam.

In accordance with the figure 2 , the steam emitting head 3 contains a heating body 6 which is closed at its upper end by a cover 7 receiving two nozzles 50 connected by a Y-shaped silicone pipe 51 to the pump 5, the heating body 6 having a general rectangular parallelepiped shape comprising a front face coming into thermal contact with the end plate 30.

In accordance with figures 4 and 5, the heating body 6 defines an enclosure in the center of which is disposed a vaporization chamber 60, the latter being delimited laterally by a peripheral wall 61 having a semi-circular front end and a straight rear end, the vaporization chamber 60 being closed at its upper end by the cover 7, the latter coming to rest in a sealed manner on the top of the peripheral wall 61.

The enclosure of the heating body 6 comprises, outside the peripheral wall 61, a volume which defines a distribution circuit 8, on either side of the vaporization chamber 60, in which the vapor produced by the chamber vaporization 60 can flow in the direction of a lumen 80 formed in the front face of the heating body 6, visible on the figure 3 , this lumen 80 having a shape corresponding to the shape of the vapor emission slit 31 of the treatment face 30A of the head 3.

The heating body 6 is advantageously constituted by an aluminum foundry in which is embedded an electrical resistance 62, of the U-shaped shielded resistance type, with a power of between 1200 W and 2000 W and preferably of the order of 1800W . The power supply to the electrical resistance 62 is regulated by means of a thermostat, not visible in the figures, around a setpoint temperature Tc measured at the center of the vaporization chamber 60. Preferably, the value of the temperature setpoint Tc cannot be adjusted by the user and is between 110 ° C and 180 ° C.

The thermostat can be constituted by a mechanical thermostat, of the bimetal type, which is attached against the back wall of the vaporization chamber 60 or by a temperature probe, of the CTN type, arranged in place of the mechanical thermostat and associated with an electronic control card for the electric resistance 62.

The thermostat communicates with the control card 9 of the pump 5, for example by a wire link, to transmit to the latter the information relating to the power supply state of the electric resistance 62.

The heating body 6 may also include a fuse circuit breaker which cuts off the power supply to the electric resistance 62 in the event of failure of the thermostat, such a circuit breaker being able for example to act when the temperature of the heating body 6 exceeds 250 ° C.

The control card 9 of the pump 5 comprises a microprocessor which implements the operating method described below:
When the device is started by pressing button 4, the device implements a preheating step in which the electrical resistance 62 of the vaporization chamber 60 is supplied with current until the The temperature of the vaporization chamber 60 reaches the setpoint temperature Tc, the supply of the electrical resistance 62 then being regulated around this setpoint temperature Tc by the thermostat.

Preferably, during this preheating step, the actuation of the trigger 52 does not cause the operation of the pump 5 as long as the temperature of the vaporization chamber 60 has not reached the set temperature Tc.

Once the preheating step is completed, the temperature of the vaporization chamber 60 is maintained around the set temperature Tc by the thermostat, the latter cutting off the supply to the electric resistance 62 when the measured temperature is higher than the temperature. setpoint Tc and, conversely, supplying current to the electrical resistance 62 when the measured temperature is lower than the setpoint temperature TC.

If the user actuates the trigger 52 once the preheating step is completed, the control card 9 controls the operation of the pump 5 according to a flow rate which is a function of the supply state of the electric resistance 62.

When the trigger 52 is actuated and the thermostat sends back to the control card 9 the information according to which the electric resistance 62 is supplied electrically, the control card 9 controls the operation of the pump 5 at a first flow rate, called the maximum flow rate. , advantageously of the order of 40 g / min.

When the trigger 52 is actuated and the thermostat sends back to the control card 9 the information according to which the electric resistance 62 is not supplied electrically, the control card 9 controls the operation of the pump 5 at a second flow rate, said reduced flow rate, advantageously of the order of 15 g / min. By way of example, the reduced flow rate of the pump 5 can be obtained by chopping the feed stream of the pump 5.

If the supply state of the electric resistance 62 changes while the trigger 52 is kept pressed by the user, the control card 9 accordingly adapts the flow rate of the pump 5 according to the operating rules defined above.

An apparatus is thus obtained which makes it possible to produce a high vapor flow rate with a vaporization chamber having a low thermal mass while limiting the risks of water flowing through the vapor orifices.

Indeed, when the electric resistance 60 is not supplied, only the thermal energy stored in the mass of the heating body 6 makes it possible to ensure the evaporation of the water injected into the vaporization chamber 60. Since the heating body 6 has a limited mass, so that the device keeps a limited weight and has good ergonomics of use, the evaporation capacity of the vaporization chamber 60 is lower when the electrical resistance 62 is not supplied while running.

Thus, with a reduced injection rate of the pump 5 when the electrical resistance 62 is not supplied with current, the risks that part of the water injected into the vaporization chamber 60 will not be evaporated are reduced.

The apparatus thus produced therefore has the advantage of providing improved performance, thanks to a higher steam flow rate, while retaining reduced weight and limiting the risk of water flow due to incomplete evaporation of water. the water injected into the vaporization chamber.

Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described and illustrated which has been given only by way of example. Modifications remain possible, in particular from the point of view of the constitution of the various elements or by substitution of technical equivalents, without thereby departing from the scope of protection of the invention.

Thus in an alternative embodiment, the maximum flow rate of the pump may be adjustable by means of a button provided for this purpose.

Thus in an alternative embodiment not shown, the reservoir and possibly the pump, can be deported in a separate base, the base then being connected to the steam emission head by a pipe allowing the circulation of water from the tank to the vaporization chamber.

Thus, in an alternative embodiment not shown, the ironing appliance may be an iron comprising a metal sole in thermal contact with the heating body.

Claims (8)

1. Steam ironing and/or smoothing apparatus including a handle (2) connected to a steam discharge head (3) including a treatment surface (30A) intended for being placed vertically opposite a garment to be smoothed and comprising at least one steam outlet opening (31), the steam discharge head (3) including a heating body (6) comprising an instantaneous steam generation chamber and an electrical resistor (62) regulated by means of a thermostat for maintaining the temperature of the steam generation chamber (60) around a set temperature, the apparatus comprising an electric pump (5) for injecting liquid into the steam generation chamber (60) characterised in that the pump (5) is controlled by a control circuit that receives information about the state of supply of the electrical resistor (62) through the thermostat, and in that the control circuit modifies the operating state of the pump (5) according to the powering state of the electrical resistor (62), the pump (5) operating according to a first flow rate when the electrical resistor (62) is powered and according to a second flow rate when the electrical resistor (62) is not powered, the second flow rate being smaller than the first flow rate.
2. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the apparatus comprises a button connected to the pump control circuit which allows the pump to be turned on and/or off.
3. Apparatus according to claim 2, characterised in that the button is a trigger that controls the operation of the pump when it is activated, the release of the trigger causing the pump to stop.
4. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the second flow rate of the pump is obtained by hashing of the pump's supply current.
5. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the second flow rate of the pump is less than 75%, and preferably less than 50%, of the first flow rate of the pump.
6. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the first flow rate is between 20 and 50 g/min.
7. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the treatment surface (30A) is supported by an end plate (30) located at the longitudinal end of the head (3) and in that the handle (2) extends transversally to the head (3).
8. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterised in that it includes a portable casing comprising the head (3), the handle (2) the heating body (6), the pump (5), the control circuit and a liquid tank (10).

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