JP2003311065A - Drying/washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the washing performance by raising the temperature of clothes and water, and to sufficiently remove heavy contamination for a drying-washing machine having a rotary blade which is freely rotatably arranged on the internal bottom part of an internal tub. <P>SOLUTION: The internal tank 4 having the rotation central shaft in the vertical direction is freely rotatably supported in an external tub 3 which is elastically suspended in a box body 1. Then, the rotary blade 6 is freely rotatably supported on the internal bottom part of the internal tub 4, and the internal tub 4 or the rotary blade 6 is driven by a motor 8. The temperature of clothes and water are raised by blowing hot air into the internal tank by a blower 10 and a heater 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a dry washing machine used in general households.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, this type of drying and washing machine has been constructed as shown in FIG. The configuration will be described below.

As shown in FIG. 8, a casing 51 is provided with an outer tub 53 which is elastically suspended by a plurality of suspensions 52, and the suspension 52 absorbs vibration during dehydration. Inside the outer tub 53, an inner tub 54 containing a laundry and an object to be dried (hereinafter referred to as clothes) is rotatably arranged around a washing / dehydrating shaft 55 having a hollow double structure. Rotor blades 56 for stirring clothes are rotatably arranged on the inner bottom of the tank 54. Further, a large number of small holes (not shown) are provided on the inner peripheral wall of the inner tank 54, and a fluid balancer 57 is provided above.

A motor (driving means) 58 is attached to the bottom of the outer tub 53, and a clutch 59 for switching the transmission of rotational force to the washing / dehydrating shaft 55 at the time of washing or dewatering and a washing / dewatering shaft 55 through the inner tub 54. Alternatively, it is connected to the rotor 56. The rotary blade 56 has a substantially W shape having an inclined surface which becomes higher in the outer peripheral direction on the outer peripheral portion, and forms a protruding rib for stirring,
In the drying process, the clothes are easily lifted up along the inclined surface by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the rotor blades 56, and the clothes are passed through the small holes (not shown) provided in the substantially W-shaped inner wall. I try to let out the warm air.

The drying blower 60 blows hot air heated by the heater 61 through the expandable bellows-shaped hose 62 into the inner tub 54 from the hot air outlet 63, and is located substantially above the housing 51. The drying air blower 60 and the heater 61 constitute a hot air blower. Circuit 64
Is for dehumidifying hot moist air, one end of which is connected to the lower bellows-shaped hose 66 connected to the drainage path port 65 of the outer tub 53, and the other end of which is connected to the drying blower 60.

The drain valve 67 is fixed to the bottom of the outer tub 53,
The drainage from the lower bellows-shaped hose 66 and the circulation path 64 is guided to the drainage valve 67 through the drainage path 68, and drained out of the machine from the drainage hose 69. The outer tank cover 70 covers the upper surface of the outer tank 53 in an airtight manner.
An inner lid 71 is provided at 0 so as to be openable and closable so that clothes can be taken in and out.

The operation of the above configuration will be described. In the washing process, the inner lid 71 is opened, clothes and water or hot water and detergent are put into the inner tub 54, and when the operation is started, a water supply valve (not shown) is opened to supply water to a predetermined water level, and then the motor. 5
Drive eight. At this time, the clutch 59 of the transmission mechanism is set to the washing side, the power of the motor 58 is transmitted to the rotating blade 56 via the washing shaft, and the rotating blade 56 rotates, so that the clothes are stirred by the rotating blade 6. It is caught by the projecting rib and pulled into the center. The clothes in the lower center part of the inner tub 54 are pushed up to the upper part of the inner tub 54 by the drawn clothes. In this way, the clothes in the inner tub 54 are agitated and washed by friction between the clothes or the inner tub 54 and the rotating blades 56 are brought into contact with each other.

In the dehydration process, after the washing is completed, the drain valve 69 is opened to drain the water in the inner tub 54, and then the clutch 59 of the transmission mechanism is switched to the dehydration side so that the power of the motor 58 is passed through the dehydration shaft. The water is separated from the clothes by transmitting it to the inner tub 54 and rotating it to give a centrifugal force to the clothes.

In the drying process, the drain valve 67 is opened and
The motor 58 is driven to rotate the rotary blades 56, and centrifugal force is applied to the clothes so that the clothes are splashed to the outside. Then, the inclined surface of the rotary blades 56 exerts a force for splashing the clothes upward (component of centrifugal force), and the clothes are agitated. While repeating this stirring, hot air is blown into the inner tub 54 from above the inner tub 54 through the upper bellows-shaped hose 62 by the blast of the drying blower 60 and the heat generation of the heater 61. This warm air removes water from the clothes, and then the inner tank 5
4, after coming out from the inside of the outer tub 53, the lower bellows-shaped hose 66
To reach the circulation path 64.

Warm air that removes moisture from clothes and contains moisture
When passing through the inner wall of the outer tub 53 and the inside of the circulation path 64, dew condensation of moisture occurs inside, and the moist warm air is dehumidified and returns to the drying blower 60. By circulating warm air in the circulation path 64, the clothes in the inner tub 54 can be dried.

[0011]

In such a conventional structure, washing is carried out by agitating the clothes by the rotating blades and by friction between the clothes and the inner tub and the rotating blades. However, in some cases, heavy stains could not be removed completely.

[0012] The present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems. It is to increase the temperature of clothes and water so that stains can be easily removed, and the rotor blades effectively apply mechanical force to improve cleaning performance. The purpose is. The second purpose is to suppress the damage of the clothes due to the excessive force applied to the clothes by the rotor blades.

[0013]

In order to achieve the first object of the present invention, a housing, an outer tank elastically suspended in the housing, and a rotatably supported inside the outer tank are provided. And the inner tank
Drive means for driving the inner tub and warm air blowing means for blowing warm air to heat clothes and water are provided in the inner tub.

As a result, at the start of washing, the clothes and water are heated to raise the temperature and the washing performance can be improved.

Further, in order to achieve the second object, the controller lengthens the time during which the output to the motor is increased during the washing process, and the output value to the motor or the rotor blade is adjusted according to the amount of cloth. The maximum number of rotations of is suppressed. Also,
The current detection means is provided so that when the output to the motor is gradually increased, the current detection means detects the current flowing to the motor so that a current above a certain level does not flow. It is possible to suppress the damage.

[0016]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a housing, an outer tank elastically suspended on the housing, and an inner tank rotatably supported in the outer tank. A rotary blade that is rotatably supported on the inner bottom of the inner tank, a driving unit that drives the inner tank or the rotary blade, a unit that detects the amount of cloth, and a warm air that blows warm air into the inner tank. The temperature of the clothes and the water in the inner tank is increased by providing a blower and supplying water according to the amount of cloth, and warming the clothes and water by the warm air supplied from the warm air blower to wash the clothes and water. Can be raised to improve the cleaning performance.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned first aspect of the present invention, the temperature is raised and washing is performed, water is supplied to a predetermined water level, and further the rotating blades are rotated by the driving means. The washing performance can be improved by stirring and washing the clothes.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned second aspect of the invention, after the temperature is raised and washing is performed, water is supplied to a predetermined water level while driving the rotor blades, and further rotated by the driving means. The washing performance can be improved by rotating the wings to stir and wash the clothes.

The invention according to claim 4 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention described in 3, the temperature is raised and washing is performed, and then the dehydration process is performed, so that dirt can be peeled off from clothes and the washing performance can be improved.

The invention according to claim 5 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention described in 4, the current detection means is provided, and the water supply amount is controlled by detecting the water content of the clothes by the current detection means while supplying water according to the cloth amount at the start of washing, and the water supply amount of a predetermined amount or more The washing performance can be improved by preventing the water from being heated for a long time, raising the temperature in a short time, and rotating the rotary blades by the drive means to stir and wash the clothes.

The invention according to claim 6 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention described in 4, the output time to the motor for driving the rotary blade once is gradually lengthened in accordance with the progress of the water supply, and even if the clothes become wet and heavy due to the water supply,
The rotor blades can stir the clothes sufficiently, the clothes are evenly mixed with water, the temperature of the clothes and the water is further raised by warm air, and the rotating means are rotated by the driving means to stir the clothes. The washing performance can be improved by washing.

The invention according to claim 7 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention described in 4, the maximum value of the output value to the motor, which is the driving means, is suppressed according to the amount of cloth, the number of rotations of the rotary blades can be suppressed, and stirring appropriate for the amount of cloth is performed. Can prevent damage to clothing without applying excessive force to clothing.

The invention according to claim 8 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention described in 4, the number of rotations is provided to suppress the maximum value of the number of rotations of the rotor blades in accordance with the amount of cloth, and the maximum number of rotations of the rotor blades can be suppressed, which is suitable for the amount of cloths. By performing the agitation, it is possible to suppress damage to the clothes without applying excessive force to the clothes.

The invention described in claim 9 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the invention as set forth in claim 4, when gradually increasing the output to the motor that is the driving means, the current flowing to the motor is detected by the current detecting means so that a current above a certain level does not flow. Damage to clothing can be suppressed without applying excessive force to clothing.

The invention according to claim 10 is the above-mentioned claim 1.
In the inventions according to 4 to 4, after supplying water according to the amount of cloth,
The rotating blade is rotated so that the rotation angle is 360 ° or less, and by performing this stirring, the entanglement of the clothes can be suppressed and the damage of the clothes can be suppressed.

[0026]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a casing 1 is provided with an outer tub 3 which is elastically suspended by a plurality of suspensions 2 therein so that vibrations during washing and dehydration are suspended. 2 is used for absorption. Also,
Inside the outer tub 3, an inner tub 4 for accommodating clothes is rotatably arranged around a washing / dehydrating shaft 5 having a hollow double structure.
A rotary blade 6 for stirring clothes is rotatably arranged on the inner bottom of the inner tank 4. Further, a large number of small holes (not shown) are provided in the inner peripheral wall of the inner tank 4, and the fluid balancer 7 is provided above.
Is provided.

The motor (driving means) 8 is attached to the bottom of the outer tub 3, and through the washing / dewatering shaft 5 and the clutch 9 that switches the transmission of rotational force to the washing / dewatering shaft 5 during washing, the inner tub 4
Alternatively, it is connected to the rotor 6. The rotary wing 6 has a substantially W-shape having an inclined surface on the outer peripheral portion, which becomes higher in the outer peripheral direction, and forms a protruding rib for stirring, so that the clothes can be rotated by the rotation of the rotary wing 6 in the heating process at the start of washing. Centrifugal force makes it easy to soar upward along the slope. Then, the temperature of the clothes and the water is raised by the heating means.

Reference numeral 10 is a blower, and 11 is a heater. The blower 10 blows warm air heated by the heater 11 into the inner tank 4 through the expandable and contractible upper bellows-shaped hose 12. The hot air blowing means 10a is constituted by the above. The circulation path 14 has one end connected to the lower bellows-shaped hose 16 connected to the drainage passage port 15 of the outer tub 3, and the other end connected to the blower 10.

Reference numeral 22 is a water supply path for supplying water into the inner tank 4, and 23 is a water supply valve. The drain valve 17 is fixed to the bottom of the outer tub 3, and the lower bellows-shaped hose 16 and the circulation passage 14 are fixed.
The drainage from the tank is guided to the drainage valve 17 through the drainage channel 18 and drained from the drainage hose 19 to the outside of the machine.
The outer tank cover 20 airtightly covers the upper surface of the outer tank 3,
An inner lid 21 is provided on the outer tub cover 20 so as to be openable and closable so that clothes can be taken in and out.

The operation of the above configuration will be described. In the washing process, the inner lid 21 is opened and clothes and detergent are put into the inner tub 4. Then, when the operation is started, the rotary blade 6 rotates several times, and the amount of cloth is discriminated by the current value flowing in the motor 8 at that time. Then, in accordance with the amount of cloth, the water supply valve 23 is opened to supply the same amount of water as the amount of cloth (or about 2 or 3 times) through the water supply path 22 into the inner tank 4. At this time, the inner tub 4 is fixed by switching the clutch 9 of the transmission mechanism to the washing side.

Then, the motor 8 is driven and the power thereof is transmitted to the rotary blades 6 via the washing shaft, and the rotary blades 6 are rotated, whereby clothes are caught by the stirring ribs of the rotary blades 6 and are stirred. At the same time, the blower 10 and the heater 11 blow warm air into the inner tub 4 to warm the clothes and water. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the stains attached to the clothes are more likely to be removed because the temperatures of the clothes and the water are higher than those when normal tap water is used. Further, by rotating the rotary blades 6 to apply a mechanical force to the clothes, the clothes can be cleaned. (The operation up to this point is hereinafter referred to as temperature rising cleaning.) Then, as shown in FIG. 3, the water supply valve is opened to supply water to a predetermined water level, and then the motor 8 is driven to rotate the rotor 6 or the inner tank 4.
Rotate to wash away the dirt floating on the clothes. At this time, by rotating the rotary blades 6 or the inner tub 4 while supplying water up to a predetermined water level, more mechanical force can be transmitted to the clothes and the cleaning performance can be improved.

In the first embodiment, the warm air blowing means 10a for raising the temperature of the clothes and water also serves as a drying air blower, which can be simplified and downsized, and can be constructed at a low cost and with a reasonable structure. Although realized, a warm air blower for heating the clothes and water may be added separately from the drying blower. Further, the dehydration process and the drying process are the same as those in the conventional example, and therefore the description thereof is omitted.

(Embodiment 2) As shown in FIG. 4, a dehydration step is carried out after a temperature rise cleaning. The other configurations and the heating up to the temperature are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

Thus, the dirt floating at the time of temperature rising cleaning can be peeled off from the clothes by using water as a medium. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, after the water supply valve is opened to supply water up to a predetermined water level, the motor 8 is driven to rotate the rotary blades 6 or the inner tub 4 and dirt (particularly solid dirt) floating from the clothes
The washing performance can be improved by washing away.

(Embodiment 3) As shown in FIG. 1, in the washing process, the inner lid 21 is opened and clothes and detergent are put into the inner tub 4. Then, when the operation is started, the rotary blade 6 rotates several times, and the amount of cloth is discriminated by the current value flowing in the motor 8 at that time. Then, in accordance with the amount of cloth, the water supply valve 23 is opened and the inner tank 4
Water is supplied through the water supply path 22. Further, while supplying water, the rotary blade 6 is rotated, and the water content of the clothes is determined by the increase of the current value flowing through the motor 8 at that time to interrupt the water supply. The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description is omitted.

As a result, it is possible to prevent the temperature of the clothes and the water from increasing due to the water supply of a predetermined amount or more. Then, the motor 8 is driven to transmit its power to the rotary wing 6 via the washing shaft, and the rotary wing 6 is rotated to stir and wash the clothes, thereby improving the cleaning performance.

(Embodiment 4) As shown in FIG. 5, when water is supplied in accordance with the amount of cloth in the washing process, the output time t to the motor for driving the rotor once for adjusting the water supply. Is gradually increased from t to t1 (t <t1). The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description is omitted.

As a result, even if the clothes contain water and become heavy due to water supply, the clothes can be sufficiently agitated by the rotary blades 6, water is evenly included in the clothes, and the clothes and water are raised by warm air. The washing performance can be improved by warming and rotating the rotary blades by the drive means to stir and wash the clothes.

(Embodiment 5) As shown in FIG. 6, in the washing process, the maximum value of the output value to the motor 8 as the driving means is suppressed according to the amount of cloth. The other configurations and basic operations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

As a result, the number of rotations of the rotary blades 6 can be suppressed, and stirring suitable for the amount of cloth is performed. That is, when the amount of cloth is small, the load applied to the rotary blade 6 is light. Then, if the maximum value of the output to the motor 8 is the same as when the amount of cloth is large (rated capacity), the rotational speed of the rotary blades 6 increases due to the light load. Therefore, by suppressing the output value to the motor 8 in accordance with the amount of cloth, the maximum number of rotations of the rotary blade 6 can be suppressed, and it is possible to prevent excessive force from being applied to the clothes by the rotary blades 6, thus damaging the clothes. Can be suppressed.

(Embodiment 6) As shown in FIG. 7, a rotational speed detecting means 25 is provided to suppress the maximum rotational speed of the rotary blade 6 in accordance with the amount of cloth. The other configurations and basic operations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

As a result, the agitation suitable for the amount of cloth can be performed. That is, when the amount of cloth is small, the load applied to the rotary blade 6 is light. Then, if the output to the motor 8 is the same as when the amount of cloth is large, the rotational speed of the rotary blades 6 increases due to the light load. Therefore, by detecting the number of rotations by the number-of-rotations detecting means 25 and suppressing the maximum number of rotations of the rotary blades 6 in accordance with the amount of cloth, it is possible to prevent excessive force from being applied to the clothes by the rotary blades 6. It is possible to suppress the damage.

(Embodiment 7) In this embodiment, when gradually increasing the output to the motor 8 which is the driving means, the current flowing to the motor 8 is detected by the current detecting means 24, and the current above a certain level is detected. It was designed so that it would not flow.

This is because the load applied to the rotor blades 6 varies depending on the condition of the clothes.
The current flowing to the motor 8 increases even if the motor is rotated. This current is detected by the current detecting means 24 so that a current above a certain level does not flow. That is, the torque of the motor 8 can be prevented from exceeding a predetermined value, and the rotor blade 6
As a result, it is possible to prevent excessive force from being applied to the clothes and prevent damage to the clothes.

(Embodiment 8) In this embodiment, after water is supplied according to the amount of cloth, the rotary blades 6 are rotated so that the rotation angle becomes 360 ° or less. Can suppress entanglement and damage to clothing.

[0047]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the housing, the outer tub elastically suspended from the housing, and the rotatably supported in the outer tub. The inner tub, a rotary blade rotatably supported on the inner bottom of the inner tub, a drive means for driving the inner tub or the rotary wing, a means for detecting the amount of cloth, and a warm air in the inner tub. A warm air blower for blowing air is provided, water is supplied in accordance with the amount of cloth, and the warm air supplied from the warm air blower raises the temperature of the clothes and the water to wash the clothes and water at the start of washing. The temperature can be raised and dirt can be easily removed.

According to the second and third aspects of the present invention, the washing performance can be improved because the clothes can be stirred and washed after the temperature is raised and washing is performed.

Further, according to the invention described in claim 4, by performing the dehydration process after the temperature is raised and the washing is performed, the dirt can be peeled off from the clothes, and the washing performance can be improved. it can.

According to the invention of claim 5, the current detection means is provided, and the water content of the clothes is detected by the current detection means to control the water supply amount. It is possible to prevent the temperature rising time from increasing and to raise the temperature in a short time.

Further, according to the invention described in claim 6, the output time to the motor for one-time driving of the rotor blades is gradually lengthened in accordance with the progress of the water supply, whereby the water is contained in the clothes. Even if the clothes become heavy, the rotary blades can sufficiently stir the clothes, and the clothes can be uniformly mixed with water to improve the cleaning performance.

According to the invention described in claims 7 to 10, damage to the clothes can be suppressed without applying excessive force to the clothes.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a drying and washing machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[Fig. 2] Cleaning performance diagram of the same washing machine

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the dry washing machine in a state where water is supplied to a predetermined water level.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the drying and washing machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention during the dehydration process.

FIG. 5 is a relational diagram of output to a motor and time according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a relationship between an output value to a motor and time according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between the rotation speed and the time of a rotary blade according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a conventional drying and washing machine.

[Explanation of symbols] 1 case 3 outer tank 4 inner tank 8 motors (driving means) 10 blower 10a Warm air blowing means 11 heater

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Masami Fukumoto             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mikio Tahara             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3B155 AA01 AA06 BA08 BB08 CB07                       CB49 CB52 CB55 KA02 KA04                       KA33 KA36 KB08 LA16 LB05                       LB19 LC07 LC08 MA02 MA05                       MA07

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A housing, an outer tub elastically suspended from the housing, an inner tub rotatably supported in the outer tub, and a rotation rotatably supported on an inner bottom portion of the inner tub. A blade, a driving unit for driving the inner tub or the rotary wing, a unit for detecting the amount of cloth, and a warm air blowing unit for blowing warm air into the inner tub, and water is supplied according to the amount of cloth, A dry washing machine characterized in that clothes and water are heated by the warm air supplied from the warm air blowing means to wash the clothes. 2. The dry washing machine according to claim 1, wherein after washing by raising the temperature, water is supplied up to a predetermined water level. 3. The dry washing machine according to claim 2, wherein after the temperature is raised and washing is performed, water is supplied to a predetermined water level while driving the rotary blades. 4. The drying and washing machine according to claim 1, wherein a dehydration step is performed after the temperature is raised and the washing is performed. 5. A current detecting means is provided, and the water content of clothes is detected by the current detecting means.
The dry washing machine according to any one of 4 above. 6. The dry laundry according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the output time to the motor for driving the rotary blade once is gradually lengthened in accordance with the progress of the water supply. Machine. 7. The maximum value of the output value to the motor as the driving means is suppressed according to the cloth amount.
The dry washing machine according to any one of 4 above. 8. The drying and washing machine according to claim 1, further comprising a rotation speed detecting unit, wherein the maximum value of the rotation speed of the rotary blade is suppressed according to the amount of cloth. 9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a current detection unit, wherein the current detection unit detects a current flowing to the motor so that a current exceeding a certain level does not flow. Dry washing machine. 10. The rotating blade according to claim 1, wherein the rotating angle of the rotating blade is 360 ° or less.
The dry washing machine according to the item.