JP2003265890A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a washing machine exhibiting an enough detergency without using a detergent. <P>SOLUTION: The washing machine has a washing tub 2 for washing, ion exchange means 14 accommodating cation-exchange resin arranged within a water supplying channel for supplying water to the washing tub 2, regenerating means 15 for regenerating the ion exchange means 14, and electrolysis means 16 for generating alkaline water and acidic water by electrolysing the water passing through the ion exchange means 14. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to a washing machine, and more particularly to a washing machine having a detergent-free course.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Water used for washing in a washing machine is
Represented by tap water. Tap water is supplied from a water source to a washing machine by a hose or the like, supplied to a washing tub in the washing machine by a user's operation, and used for washing clothes.

At the time of washing, it is common to use a synthetic detergent containing a surfactant component at the same time as water supply, and the amount of consumption is considerable as awareness of cleanliness increases.

However, as environmental awareness has increased in recent years,
Environmental load of surfactant components is becoming a problem.
In a washing machine, it is a surfactant that is effectively used to remove dirt, but when it is released into the natural environment, it has a dual aspect of hydrophilicity and lipophilicity, which makes it an ecological system for aquatic organisms. And the potential for harm to plants has emerged.

Also, soaps that have been used for a long time have the possibility of becoming pollutants that pollute water due to the large amount of soap used.

To address these problems, a washing machine capable of reducing the amount of detergent has been conventionally proposed. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-328485 proposes a washing machine that removes hardness components (such as calcium and magnesium) in tap water by providing ion removing means in the water supply path.

A detergent containing a surfactant reacts with the divalent cation, which is the hardness component, to produce a metal soap, which reduces the surfactant that can contribute to washing, thus deteriorating the detergency.

By using the water that has passed through the ion-exchange resin for washing, it is possible to effectively use the surfactant component, which has been a metal ion, for washing, and to reduce the amount of detergent by that amount. It will be possible.

[0009]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 8485 proposes a washing machine that can obtain a detergency equivalent to that of a conventional one, even if the amount of detergent used is reduced.

However, the use of detergent is a prerequisite, and no use of the detergent has not been considered at all.

Further, according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-185187, alkaline water of electrolyzed tap water is used at the time of washing to improve the cleaning ability, but it can contribute to saving detergent. Is.

In order to solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a washing machine improved so that a high detergency can be obtained without using a surfactant.

[0013]

As a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, a washing machine which does not use a surfactant, which has a possibility of having an environmental load, is desired. For that purpose, it is indispensable to reform the supplied water so as to obtain the detergency.

Therefore, in the washing machine according to the present invention, a washing tub for washing, an ion-exchange means provided in the water supply path for supplying water to the washing tub and containing a cation-exchange resin, and the ion A washing machine characterized in that it has a regeneration means for regenerating the exchange means, and an electrolysis means for generating alkaline water and acidic water by electrolysis from the water passed through the ion exchange means.

By electrolyzing the water softened by the ion exchange resin, washing with the alkaline water has an effect on protein stains.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the tap water supplied is softened by the ion exchange resin, salt is added by the regeneration means, and then electrolyzed by the electrolysis means. By adding salt immediately before electrolysis, the water becomes rich in electrolyte, and it becomes possible to generate highly alkaline water. Highly alkaline conditions are also effective against stubborn sebum stains.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, by using a sodium-substitution type resin as the ion exchange resin in the water supply channel, it becomes possible to generate alkaline water containing a large amount of sodium ions. By performing electrolysis under sodium ion rich conditions, it becomes possible to deal with stubborn stains.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the regenerating means for the ion-exchange resin is constructed so that water can flow in the direction opposite to that in washing when regenerating. This allows a compact design.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the regenerating means for the ion-exchange resin has a measuring section capable of adjusting the amount of the regenerant added, whereby the regenerant can be used without waste.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to generate highly alkaline water by controlling the amount of supplied water and the electric current.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the structure of a washing machine which can be operated during water supply according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a water tub 2 is provided inside an outer tub 1 which constitutes a main body of a washing machine in a state of being suspended by four supporting mechanisms 50 arranged around the water tub 2. There is. Inside the water tub 2, there is a washing / dehydrating tub 3, and inside the outer tub 1, which is below the bottom of the water tub 2, a mechanism 5 is provided. The mechanical unit 5 has a motor 6 and is configured to transmit the drive of the motor 6 to the washing / dehydrating tub 3.

A washing / dehydrating tub 3 is rotatably disposed inside the water tub 2. The washing / dehydrating tub 3 is provided with a pulsator 4 agitator on the bottom surface.
It is configured to rotate by interlocking with a clutch mechanism or independently. The washing / dehydrating tank 3 is a so-called holeless tank having no small holes on the wall surface. The tank 3 is formed in a tapered shape, and drainage during dehydration is performed from the small hole at the top to the water tank 2.

A top plate 8 is provided around the opening at the upper end of the outer tub 1.
Is installed and an operation panel (not shown) is provided, and the operation panel covers the exterior of the upper part of the washing machine. A laundry loading port 8a is formed in the center of the top plate 8. Further, in the outer tub 1, a water level sensor (not shown) capable of detecting the amount of water in the washing / dehydrating tub 3 and a control unit 32 capable of detecting the input load amount are provided.

Now, in order to start the operation, when the laundry 40 is put into the washing / dehydrating tub 3 and the motor 6 is driven,
The rotational drive of the motor 6 is transmitted to the washing / dehydrating tub 3 via the mechanism portion 5, and the laundry 40 in the washing / dehydrating tub 3 is agitated.

At the time of initial stirring, the load amount in the washing / dehydrating tub 3 is determined according to a program preset in the control unit 32, and the water level is determined with respect to the load amount. Then, the water supply starts from the water supply port 30 connected to the washing machine,
Washing starts. The motor 6 can also perform dehydration operation by continuously rotating at high speed.

In the washing machine configured and operating as described above, the washing machine according to the present embodiment has the ion exchange means 14, the ion exchange resin regenerating means 15, the electrolysis means 16, and the flow rate control valve 17 as the water supply passage. I have it.

FIG. 2 shows the ion exchange means 1 of the washing machine.
4, the water supply path including the regeneration means 15 and the electrolysis means 16 is shown. As shown in this figure, the water supply unit includes a flow rate control valve 17a connected to a water tap or the like, an ion exchange unit 14 formed of a container, a regeneration unit 15 formed of a container, and a storage tank 23. And electrolysis means 16. The electrolysis means 16 has a storage tank 23, an electrolysis tank 24, a diaphragm 25, and an electrode 26. The electrolysis means 16 includes the discharge ports 31a and 3
1b is connected. The flow rate control valve 17b is provided at the discharge port 31a.
Is attached, and the flow rate control valve 17 is attached to the discharge port 31b.
c is attached. The discharge port on the alkaline water side continues to the flow path for supplying water into the washing / dehydrating tub 3.

The ion exchange means 14 is a cylindrical container. The cylindrical container has a water inlet 22a at the bottom, a discharge port 22c at the top, and a salt water outlet 22b at the bottom. In the container,
The space partitioned by the mesh plate 28 is filled with a cation exchange resin 29. Here, a sodium substitution type ion exchange resin was used.

The flow control valve 17a is usually the ion exchange means 1
When the tap water is switched to the 4 side and the tap water is sent to the ion exchange means 14 by the opening operation of the water supply solenoid valve, the water passes through the water inlet 22a and fills the space below the ion exchange means 14. Becomes When a sufficient amount of water has been sent to the lower space, it will then pass through the partition mesh plate 28 and then the ion exchange resin 29. The water softened by passing through the ion exchange resin 29 passes through the discharge port 22c, and is subsequently sent to the storage tank 23 before the electrolytic cell 24 by hydraulic pressure.

The regenerating means 15 is provided on the upper part of the outer washing tub 1 with a lid. Commercially available salt 41 is used as the regeneration means. A spiral jig is rotatably provided as a feeding mechanism portion 15a for feeding the salt 41 inside the regenerating means 15, and the container has a hopper shape.

If necessary, a signal from the control section 32 is used to operate the delivery mechanism section 15a to deliver the salt 41 to the space below the regenerating means container. As the timing for feeding the salt 41, it is operated every time a fixed amount of soft water is stored in the storage tank 23. In this case, it is preferable that the controller 32 detect the amount of soft water stored in the storage tank 23 by a water level sensor (not shown).

When the salt 41 is fed, the control unit 3
The flow rate control valve 17a is switched to the regeneration means 15 side by 2 to send the amount of water commensurate with the amount of salt added. It is preferable that the salt 41 is fed out by the feeding mechanism 15a so that the prescribed salt 41 can be fed out from the volume of the storage tank 23 per one rotation. As a result, the feeding mechanism 15a
At the time when the operation of the number of times is completed, after the amount of water commensurate with the amount of added salt is sent, the operation of switching the flow rate control valve 17a to the side of the ion exchange means 14 is repeated alternately, and the regeneration means 15 causes a certain amount of water. A saline solution with a concentration of 23
Sent to.

Further, the saline solution having a certain concentration from the regeneration means 15 is switched to the ion exchange resin 14 side by the control of the flow rate adjusting valve 17d, and the cation exchange resin 29 of the ion exchange resin 14 to be described later is replaced. Water is sent for regeneration.

The electrolysis means 16 has a storage tank 23 on the upper side. The storage tank 23 is provided with an inflow port 22e into which water passed through the ion exchange resin by the flow rate control valve 17d or saline solution generated by the regeneration means 15 flows. The softened tap water is gradually stored, and a required amount of saline solution is added from the above-mentioned regeneration means 15 for each fixed amount of the stored tap water.

When the amount of water exceeds a certain amount (for example, the amount of full water), the lower spring lowers due to its own weight, and it becomes possible to send water from below the storage tank 23 to the electrolytic tank 24. In this case, the entire amount of the soft water stored in the storage tank 23 is sent to the electrolysis tank 24, while the flow control valve 17a is controlled to stop the water supply, and when the storage tank 23 becomes empty,
It is preferable to start the water supply by controlling the flow rate control valve 17a. Two electrode plates 26, 26 are arranged in the electrolytic cell 24, and each of them is in a state capable of being energized. A diaphragm 25 is provided between the electrode plates 26, 26. The water sent from the storage tank 23 is electrolyzed in the electrolytic tank, and alkaline water is generated on the cathode side and acidic water is generated on the anode side.

At this time, by controlling the flow rate and the current value,
Alkaline water with an effective pH can be produced. The generated alkaline water is sent to the washing / dehydrating tank 3 from the lower outlet 31a. The water supply amount is adjusted by a flow rate adjusting valve 17b located in the middle of the discharge port 31a. Further, the acidic water is discharged from the lower discharge port 31b. The acidic water generated at this time is discarded. However, a separate tank is provided and the acidic water is temporarily stored in this tank. The stored acidic water can also be used as rinsing water. In that case, the acid water will also provide a sterilizing effect.

When the water supply to the washing / dehydrating tub 3 is completed, the control unit 32 operates the feeding mechanism 15a of the regenerating means 15 to feed a fixed amount of the salt 41, and
By switching the flow rate adjusting valve 17a to the regeneration means 15 side and switching the flow rate adjusting means 17d to the ion exchange means 14, a constant amount of saline solution is supplied to the ion exchange means 14.

The operation of the washing machine of the present invention having the above construction will be described. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the user puts the laundry in the washing / dehydrating tub 3, turns on the power switch, and presses the start button.

The washing machine detects the load amount of cloth by the rotation of the pulsator 4 and starts supplying water up to the value indicated by the water level sensor. After detecting the amount of cloth, the built-in microcomputer opens the water supply solenoid valve (not shown). Tap water passes from the water tap, passes through the water supply solenoid valve, passes through the flow rate control valve 17a switched to the ion exchange means 14 side, and flows into the cylindrical container from the water inlet 22a. The inflowing tap water is
The pressure raises the inside of the cylindrical container, passes through the filled cation exchange resin 29, and flows out from the discharge port 22c. During the softening process, the flow control valve 17
a is switched to the regenerating unit 15 side, and saline is fed to the storage tank 23 in advance. In the storage tank 23, soft water rich in sodium is stored. The stored soft water is sent to the lower electrolytic cell 24, and inside the electrolytic cell 24, the electrodes 26, 26
By applying a voltage to, strong alkaline water and acidic water are generated. Acidic water and alkaline water are discharged from discharge ports 31b and 31a provided below the electrolysis means 16, respectively. The water from the alkaline side is supplied to the washing and dehydrating tank as it is. The acidic water is discarded outside the washing / dehydrating tank and drained as it is from the drain port. When the water level sensor detects that the required washing water has been supplied to the washing / dehydrating tub, the feeding mechanism portion 15a of the regenerating means 15 delivers the salt, and the flow rate control valve 17a is switched to the regenerating means 15 side. Saline is again produced at 15.

With the above operation, the control for generating soft water and the control for generating salt water can be performed, so that the required washing water can be supplied and the cation exchange resin 29 of the ion exchange resin 14 can be promptly regenerated. The preparation for soft water generation can be done quickly.

This saline solution is sent to the ion exchange means 14 by switching the flow rate control valve 17d, and the cation exchange resin 29 is regenerated. The saline solution that has passed through the cation exchange resin 29 is discharged from the discharge port 22b. After that, the microcomputer closes the water supply solenoid valve to stop the water supply. Then, the pulsator 4 provided at the bottom of the washing / dehydrating tub 3 is reversed in the normal direction to start washing. Although the water supplied to the washing / dehydrating tank 3 does not contain a detergent, the same washing power as the detergent can be obtained. In Table 1,
The washing test result using this invention is shown.

[0044]

[Table 1]

Table 1 uses the water produced according to the invention,
It shows the result obtained by using for partial washing. An ultrasonic stain remover was used for partial washing. A comparison was made on the removal of stains on JIS wet artificial soiled fabrics. Cleaning time is 30 seconds to 6
At 0 seconds, Table 1 shows the respective cleaning rates.

The cleaning rate as used herein is based on JIS and is a value indicating the cleaning power obtained from the reflectance of the surface of the contaminated cloth by the following formula.

Cleaning rate (%) = 100 × (base cloth reflectance-post-cleaning reflectance) / (base cloth reflectance-pre-cleaning reflectance) Explaining the results, it does not reach the case where the detergent stock solution is supplied. The value was higher by about 5% (54.5 and 59.1%) as compared with the cleaning liquid having the concentration used for normal washing. In addition, a significantly significant difference was confirmed even when compared to the water obtained by simply electrolyzing tap water. Therefore, it was found that by using the produced water according to the present invention, washing with mechanical power can be expected to have a detergency equal to or higher than that of a conventional detergent.

The embodiments disclosed this time are to be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is shown not by the above description but by the claims, and is intended to include meanings equivalent to the claims and all modifications within the scope.

[0049]

As described above, according to the present invention, salt water is added to water softened by an ion exchange resin, and alkaline water obtained by electrolyzing the salt is used for washing. It is possible to provide a washing machine that can obtain an effective detergency without using a detergent.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a water supply channel of the washing machine according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 water tank, 14 ion exchange means, 15 regeneration means, 1
6 Electrolytic means.

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Mikuhei Ikemizu             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company F term (reference) 3B155 AA17 BB14 CA05 CB06 MA01                       MA02                 4D025 AA02 AB19 BA06 BB12 CA06                       CA10 DA06                 4D061 DA03 DB07 DB08 EA02 EB01                       EB04 EB12 EB37 EB39 ED13                       FA08 GA04 GA12 GC06

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A washing tub for washing, an ion exchange means provided in a water supply path for supplying water to the washing tub, containing a cation exchange resin, a regeneration means for regenerating the ion exchange means, and the ions A washing machine comprising: an electrolyzing unit that generates alkaline water and acidic water by electrolysis from water that has been passed through the exchange unit. 2. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the supplied tap water is softened by the ion exchange resin, salt is added by the regeneration means, and then electrolyzed by the electrolysis means. 3. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the ion exchange resin contains a sodium-substitution type resin. 4. The water is made to flow back through the water passage when the ion exchange resin is regenerated.
The washing machine described in. 5. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the ion exchange resin regenerating unit is configured to be able to adjust the amount of regenerant added. 6. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the amount of supplied water and the electric current can be controlled to generate highly alkaline water.