JP2010069044A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a washing machine that notifies the user that removal of transport fixture after transporting the washing machine is forgotten, and prevents failure. <P>SOLUTION: The washing machine includes: a water tub 82 rotatably enclosing a drum 78 and supported within a washing machine body 83; the transport fixture 84 to anchor between the water tub 82 and the washing machine body 83 during transportation of the washing machine; an acceleration sensor 88 fixed to the water tub 82; a displacement calculator 40 to calculate the acceleration output, and output a displacement; a motor 81 to rotates the drum 78; a controller 31 to control the rotation of the motor 81 and a series of washing steps; and a display 36, wherein the controller 31 is configured in the step of detecting quantity of laundry to increase rotation of the tub to a predetermined rotating speed N2 that is not greater than the primary resonance frequency of a vibrating system including the water tub; to retain the rotation at the predetermined rotating speed for ts seconds; to detect the acceleration of motion of the water tub 82 for ts seconds by the acceleration sensor 88 to be calculated to the displacement by the displacement calculator 40; to compare the calculation result with a preset reference value; and to determine the presence of the transport fixture 84 when the calculation result is smaller than the reference value, and display the information that the water tub is anchored on the display 36. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a washing machine having a central axis of rotation in a horizontal direction or an inclination direction and elastically supporting a drum and a water tub for storing laundry in a washing machine main body so as to be swingable.

  Conventionally, this type of washing machine has an anti-vibration structure that prevents vibration accompanying the rotation of the drum from being transmitted to the main body of the washing machine, and also detects vibration of the water tank in which the drum is installed during dehydration operation by an acceleration sensor. It has been proposed to detect abnormal vibrations (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an internal mechanism of the washing machine described in Patent Document 1. In the washing machine main body 1, a water tank 2 is supported in a suspended state in a suspended state by a suspension 3 having a vibration isolation structure from above. In addition, the damper 4 is supported so as to attenuate vibrations from below.

  A drum 5 formed in a cylindrical shape with a bottom is rotatably supported in the water tank 2, and rotation of a motor 7 fixed to the outer bottom portion of the water tank 2 causes a motor pulley 8, a belt 9, a drive pulley 6, and the like. Then, the drum 5 is transmitted to be driven to rotate such as washing, rinsing and dehydration.

  An acceleration sensor 10 is fixed to the aquarium 2, and when the aquarium 2 vibrates and acceleration is applied to the acceleration sensor 10, an internal vibrator is shaken to convert the displacement into an electrical signal and transmit it to a control device (not shown). And used for vibration control. In addition, a reed switch 14 is attached to the water tank 2, and an ON-OFF signal is transmitted to a control unit (not shown) by a magnet 15 attached to the drive pulley 6, and used for rotation control and the like.

  When the laundry put in the drum 5 is deviated during the dehydration process of the washing machine, the aquarium 2 is supported in a swingable manner so as to absorb the misalignment and perform dehydration rotation. 1 can be prevented, but if an abnormally large displacement occurs, the water tank 2 may cause abnormal vibration.

  If the aquarium 2 vibrates abnormally, a large noise may be generated from the washing machine or the washing machine may be damaged. In order to solve this problem, the vibration of the aquarium 2 detected by the acceleration sensor 10 is used in this conventional example. Accordingly, operations such as reducing the number of rotations by rotation control or stopping the dehydrating operation and supplying water again to eliminate the deviation of the laundry are controlled in accordance with the determination result of the vibration. .

  On the other hand, in the said structure, if the water tank 2 is comprised so that rocking | fluctuation is possible inside the washing machine main body 1, if the water tank 2 rocks abnormally large at the time of conveyance transport of a washing machine, it will be attached to water tank itself or a water tank. The member may collide with the inner wall surface of the washing machine main body 1 or other members attached inside the washing machine main body 1 to cause damage.

Therefore, in order to solve such problems at the time of transport and transfer, a transfer fitting 16 is attached between the washing machine main body 1 and the water tub 2 with a fixing bolt 17, and is fixed and held so that the water tub 2 does not swing. Is installed in the user's home, the structure is such that the fixing bolt 17 and the transfer fitting 16 are removed to release the fixed holding of the water tank 2.
JP-A-3-264088

  However, in the above-described conventional configuration, after the washing machine is transferred, if the transfer bracket is forgotten to be removed and the washing and dehydrating operation is performed, the vibration is prevented by a suspension or a damper attached for the purpose of reducing vibration when the drum rotates. The effect did not function, and there was a problem that the washing machine main body generated abnormal noise, abnormal vibration, damage to members, and the like. In addition, since the abnormality mainly occurs during the dehydration operation, in a normal washing machine with automatic operation, the user is usually away from the device at the time of the dehydration process, and the abnormality notification cannot be promptly notified to the user. There was also a problem.

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, detects the presence or absence of a transfer fitting at the initial stage of the washing process, and notifies the user with a display means or the like when there is a forgotten removal of the transfer fitting. Therefore, it is intended to prevent problems caused by abnormal vibration during washing and dehydration.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a washing machine of the present invention includes a water tub that rotatably includes a drum that accommodates laundry, and is swingably supported in the main body of the washing machine. Transfer bracket for fixing the machine body, an acceleration sensor fixed to the water tank, an acceleration detection unit for detecting the acceleration output of the acceleration sensor, and a displacement calculation unit for calculating the acceleration output in the front-rear direction or the vertical direction of the water tank as displacement A motor for rotationally driving the drum, a rotation speed detection unit for detecting the number of rotations of the motor, a control unit for controlling the rotation of the motor and controlling a series of washing steps, an input setting unit, and a display unit The control unit generates a predetermined acceleration torque in the motor in the cloth amount detection step, accelerates the rotation of the drum, and reduces the rotation speed to a rotation speed N2 equal to or lower than a primary resonance frequency of a vibration system such as a water tank. Control to maintain the rotation speed of N2 for ts seconds, detect a signal from an acceleration sensor attached to the water tank during the ts seconds, and detect acceleration in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction of the water tank as the acceleration detection unit , And the acceleration signal is calculated as a displacement in the front-rear direction and the up-down direction by the displacement calculation unit, and when it is smaller than a preset reference value, it is detected that there is a transfer bracket, and the transfer bracket is released. Is displayed on the display means.

  As a result, even if the installer unpacks from the packing state of the transport at the user's home and forgets to remove the washing machine's transfer bracket when the washing machine is installed at the target location, the user can Since the presence or absence of the transfer bracket can be accurately recognized in the cloth amount detection process, which is a process, it is possible to respond quickly.

  The washing machine of the present invention can prevent problems due to abnormal vibrations during washing and dehydration by accurately detecting and notifying the user of forgetting to remove the transfer fitting during transportation.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a rotation center shaft in a horizontal direction or an inclination direction, a drum that accommodates laundry and performs a rotational movement, and the drum is rotatably included and elastically swingable in a washing machine body. A supported water tank, a transfer fitting for fixing the water tank and the washing machine body during transport of the washing machine, an acceleration sensor capable of detecting vibration components in a plurality of directions fixed to the water tank, and an acceleration output of the acceleration sensor are detected. An acceleration detection unit that performs a displacement calculation unit that calculates an acceleration output in the front-rear direction or the vertical direction of the water tank as a displacement in the front-rear direction or the vertical direction, a motor that rotationally drives the drum, and a rotation that detects the number of rotations of the motor A speed detection unit; a control unit that controls rotation of the motor based on a detection output of the rotation speed detection unit; and controls a series of processes such as washing, rinsing, and dehydration; and the control unit and a control signal And an input setting unit that performs transmission and reception, and a display unit, wherein the control unit generates a predetermined acceleration torque in the motor in a cloth amount detection step, accelerates the rotation of the drum, and primary of a vibration system such as a water tank Is controlled to maintain the rotational speed of N2 for ts seconds, detects a signal from an acceleration sensor attached to the water tank during the ts seconds, When the acceleration detection unit detects the acceleration in the vertical direction, the acceleration output is calculated as the displacement in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction by the displacement calculation unit, and is smaller than a preset reference value, there is a transfer bracket. By detecting and displaying on the display means that the transfer bracket has not been released, the presence / absence of the transfer bracket is determined and displayed in the initial process of detecting the amount of washing machine cloth to inform the user. It is possible to occupy, the occurrence of abnormal vibration is avoided, and is performed by utilizing the structure of the practically used come vibration sensor and cloth amount detection conventionally, inexpensive to practical use. In addition, since the maximum number of rotations of the drum in the detection process is set lower than the primary resonance frequency of the water tank, a large amount of energy is not generated even when the water tank is shaken at the time of detection. Even so, it can be detected without generating abnormal vibration or noise.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a structure of a drum type washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control circuit of the drum type washing machine, and FIG. 3 is a drum type washing machine. FIGS. 1 (a) and 4 (b) showing the operation of detecting the amount of cloth in FIG. 4 (2) showing the operation of detecting the amount of cloth of the drum type washing machine, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method.

  In FIG. 1, a water tank unit 76 rotatably houses a drum 78 in a water tank 82, and supports a rotating shaft 79 of the drum 78 with a bearing 80 provided on the back surface of the water tank 82, and a drum on the rotating shaft 79. A drive motor 81 is connected.

  The aquarium unit 76 is disposed with its axis inclined in the washing machine main body 83, and its weight is supported by a damping anti-vibration damper 70 attached to the base 73 of the washing machine main body 83. The first anti-vibration spring 71 and the second anti-vibration spring 72 between the back surface 86 of the washing machine body 83 are rocked between the upper support fitting 75 fixed to the upper surface of the washing machine body 83 and the upper surface of the washing machine body 83. It is supported in an elastic and vibration-proof manner.

  A door 87 is pivotally supported on the left inclined surface of the washing machine main body 83 so that the door 87 can be opened and closed, and the user puts laundry clothes into the drum 78 from the door 87 portion.

  A control unit 31 composed of a microcomputer or the like for controlling a series of processes such as washing, rinsing, and dehydration of the washing machine is provided on the input setting means 35 and the display means 36 disposed above the door 87 and on the upper outer wall of the water tank 82. Signal transmission is performed with the fixed acceleration sensor 88, and rotation control of the motor 81 and the like is performed.

  The acceleration sensor 88 is composed of, for example, a semiconductor acceleration sensor, and is not composed of acceleration in one direction, but is composed of an acceleration sensor in multiple axes (two or three axes) such as front, rear, left, right and up. This is because the vibration of the actual aquarium unit 76 is not necessarily limited to one direction, so that a highly accurate movement of the aquarium 82 is detected using a multi-axis acceleration sensor.

  Further, the upper support fitting 75 fixed to the upper portion of the water tank 82 and the back surface portion 86 of the washing machine main body 83 are provided with a transfer bolt 84 for preventing the water tank unit 76 from swinging when the washing machine is transported. It is installed with. This is necessary only during transportation, and is removed together with the fixing bolt 85 when the washing machine is installed and installed.

  In the block configuration diagram of the control circuit of FIG. 2, the inverter circuit 24 uses the DC power rectified by the rectifier 21 and smoothed by the smoothing circuit including the choke coil 22 and the smoothing capacitor 23 as the driving power. Thus, the motor 81 is rotationally driven.

  Further, the control unit 31 controls the rotation of the motor 81 based on the driving instruction input from the input setting unit 35 and the monitoring information of the driving state detected by each detecting unit (not shown), and the load driving unit 26 controls the operations of the water supply valve 27, the drain valve 28, the blower fan 12, and the heater 29, and the display means 36 transmits a display signal so that the user can know the operating state and the control state.

  The motor 81 includes a stator having three-phase windings 7a, 7b, and 7c and a rotor (not shown) having two-pole permanent magnets, and is provided with three position detection elements 30a, 30b, and 30c. The rotation is controlled by a PWM control inverter circuit 24 configured as a motor and configured by switching elements 24a to 24f.

  The rotor position detection signals detected by the position detection elements 30a, 30b, and 30c are input to the control unit 31 configured by a microcomputer or the like. Based on this rotor position detection signal, the drive circuit 32 performs PWM control of the on / off states of the switching elements 24a to 24f, thereby controlling the energization of the three-phase windings 7a, 7b, and 7c of the stator to control the motor 81. Rotate at the required speed.

  The control unit 31 includes a rotation speed detection unit 33 to which detection outputs of the three position detection elements 30a, 30b, and 30c are input. The rotation speed detection unit 33 is any of the three position detection elements 30a, 30b, and 30c. The period is detected in response to the change in the state of the signal, and the rotation speed of the motor 81 is calculated from the period.

  Since the load applied to the drum 78, that is, the motor 81 fluctuates according to the amount of clothes put into the drum 78, if the detection output of the rotation speed detection unit 33 is supplied to the cloth amount detection unit 34, the detected rotation is detected. Based on the number, the amount of cloth put into the drum 78 is detected.

  Since the detection output of the rotation speed detection unit 33 of the motor 81 corresponds to the rotation number of the drum 78, the rotation number of the drum 78 is obtained from the detection output of the rotation speed detection unit 33 in the following description.

  The acceleration sensor 88 fixed to the aquarium 82 detects accelerations in a plurality of directions at least in the vertical and vertical directions of the aquarium, and the acceleration detection unit 39 configured in the control unit 31 receives a digital signal or an analog signal from the acceleration sensor 88. The presence / absence of a transfer bracket is detected by detecting the presence / absence of abnormal vibration from acceleration data obtained by sampling the acceleration at a period of 160 Hz in the cloth amount detection process and displacement data of the water tank 82 obtained by calculating the acceleration data by the displacement calculator 40.

  The cloth amount detection method and the detection method of the presence / absence of a transfer metal fitting in the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and 5.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram (1) illustrating the operation of detecting the cloth amount, where the horizontal axis indicates the elapsed time from the start of the cloth amount detection, and the vertical axis indicates the rotational speed of the motor 81, that is, the drum 78.

  When the controller 31 instructs the start of the cloth amount detection process before the start of the washing operation, the motor 81 starts to rotate, and after the predetermined time has elapsed or the predetermined rotational speed N1 is reached, the motor 81 causes the acceleration torque T1. And a first detection step is performed in which the rotational speed is increased by ΔN1 and reaches a predetermined rotational speed N2 during time t1.

Here, the predetermined rotational speed N1 is a low-speed rotational speed immediately after the start of the motor 81, and the predetermined rotational speed N2 is a rotation below the primary resonance frequency of the water tank unit 76 which is the vibration system in FIG. Is a number. Immediately after the rotation speed reaches N2, control is performed to maintain the rotation speed of N2 for ts seconds without decreasing the rotation speed, so that the rotation speed of N2 is stably maintained. Is done.

  The reason why the N2 rotational speed is maintained for ts seconds is to reduce the variation in reaching the N2 rotational speed due to the change in the moment of inertia of the vibration system such as the drum depending on the amount of clothes put into the drum 78, and the vibration sensor 88. This is to reduce the variation in the acceleration detected by.

  Usually, when the rotational speed N2 can be ideally maintained as shown in FIG. 3, the N2 rotational speed is when the inertial moment of the vibration system such as the drum is small and the inertial moment of the vibration system such as the drum is large. Overshoot after reaching to may slightly increase from the N2 rotation speed, and the amount of overshoot varies depending on the amount and type of laundry.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 4 (2) showing the operation of detecting the cloth amount, after the rotational speed reaches N2, the rotational speed overshoots by ΔNs, but the rotational speed is immediately controlled by the rotational speed correction control. The acceleration is detected by the acceleration sensor 88 during the next ts seconds to detect the fixture.

  In addition, although setting of ts second in an actual product depends on the capacity of the washing machine, it is known that correct detection can be performed if it is normally set within 1 to 3 seconds.

  After the fixing metal fitting detection process is completed, the rotation speed of the drum 78 is changed from acceleration to deceleration, and then the deceleration torque T2 is generated by the motor 81 which has rotated by inertia, and the predetermined rotation speed N3 is obtained during the time t2. A second detection step is performed in which the rotational speed is decreased by ΔN2 and reaches a predetermined rotational speed N4. At this time, since the deceleration from the N2 rotational speed is accurately performed, the rotational speed decreasing speed t2 can be accurately detected.

  In the cloth amount detection, t1 and t2 are obtained from the load generated in the motor 81 when the rotation speed is increased in the first detection process and the rotation speed decrease speed in the second detection process, and the cloth amount detection unit 34 is obtained. Is calculated based on a predetermined table.

  Normally, after detecting the amount of cloth, the water level is set according to the amount of clothes to be washed, a water supply process and a detergent are introduced, and the washing process is started.

  In the initial stage of the cloth amount detection process before the start of the washing operation, the acceleration is detected from the swing of the water tank, and the transfer fitting is detected in the steps described below.

  In the flowchart showing the transfer metal fitting detection method of FIG. 5, when a signal for starting the washing operation is input by the input setting means 35 (step S31), the motor 81 is started (step S32), and acceleration detection is started. (Step S33).

  After at least the vertical and longitudinal acceleration signals of the water tank unit 76 from the acceleration sensor 88 are detected by the acceleration detector 39 (step S33), and sampling of the digital signal or analog signal from the acceleration sensor 38 at 160 Hz is started. When the cloth amount detection process starts (step S34), the control unit 31 drives the motor 81 to increase the rotational speed of the drum 78 from the predetermined rotational speed N1 with a predetermined torque, so that the rotational speed is ΔN1. Control is performed so as to reach a predetermined rotational speed N2 that is increased by a certain amount (step S35).

When the drum 78 reaches the rotation speed N2, speed control is performed so that the rotation speed of the drum 78 is maintained at N2 (step S37). When the rotation speed of the drum 78 is stabilized at N2, measurement of acceleration signals in the front-rear direction (X-axis) and the vertical direction (Z-axis) is started (step S38), and the acceleration signal is measured for ts seconds at the rotation speed N2 (step S38). S39).

  From the longitudinal (X-axis) and vertical (Z-axis) acceleration signals obtained in ts seconds of step S38, the X-axis and Z-axis direction acceleration signals are calculated by the displacement arithmetic unit 40 of the control device by the four arithmetic calculations. The amount of displacement in the front-rear direction (X-axis) and the vertical direction (Z-axis) per one rotation is calculated (step S40).

  Here, it compares with the reference value of the displacement of the water tank 82 in the front-rear direction (X axis) (step S41), and if it is smaller than the reference value, it compares with the reference value of the displacement of the water tank 82 in the vertical direction (Z axis). (Step 42), if smaller than the reference value, the water tank 82 is fixed to the washing machine main body 83, so that the vibration that originally occurs does not occur, it is determined that there is a transfer bracket (Step S43), and the subsequent operation is performed. While stopping (step S44), an abnormality is displayed on the display means 36 (step S45).

  If the reference value is larger than the reference value in step S41 and step S42, it is determined that the water tank 82 is swingably movable, it is determined that there is no transfer fitting (step S46), and the next process starts. (Step S47).

  The operation and action of the washing machine configured as described above will be described below.

  In the initial process of detecting the amount of washing machine cloth in the process of washing machine operation, the N2 rotational speed below the primary resonance frequency of the aquarium is maintained for ts time, and the acceleration signal is detected during the ts time, The displacement calculator calculates the longitudinal and vertical displacements and compares them with the displacement reference value, so it can detect the presence or absence of a transfer bracket with high accuracy by directly detecting the drum amplitude value. It becomes.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, since the presence or absence of the transfer bracket is determined and displayed in the initial step of performing the washing machine cloth amount detection in the washing machine operation process, it is possible to quickly notify the user. Abnormal vibrations are avoided.

  In addition, this determination configuration does not require a special structure and can be put into practical use at low cost because it is performed using a configuration of vibration sensor and cloth amount detection that has been put into practical use.

  Moreover, since the maximum number of rotations of the drum in the detection process is set lower than the primary resonance frequency of the aquarium, no large energy is generated even if the aquarium sways during detection, so that the transfer bracket is not removed. However, it can be detected without generating abnormal vibration or noise.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it is possible to detect forgetting to remove the transfer bracket at the time of transporting the washing machine with high accuracy, and to prevent problems caused by forgetting to remove, such as abnormal vibration during washing and dehydration, for home use. Useful for commercial washing machines.

Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the drum type washing machine in Embodiment 1 of this invention Block diagram of control circuit of the drum type washing machine The figure which shows the operation | movement of the cloth amount detection of the drum type washing machine (1) The figure which shows the operation | movement of the cloth amount detection of the drum type washing machine (2) Flow chart showing a method for detecting a transfer bracket of the drum type washing machine Sectional drawing which shows the internal mechanism of the conventional drum type washing machine

Explanation of symbols

Reference Signs List 31 control unit 33 rotation speed detection unit 34 cloth amount detection unit 35 input setting unit 36 display unit 39 acceleration detection unit 40 displacement calculation unit 78 drum 79 rotation center axis 81 motor 82 water tank 83 washing machine main body 84 transfer bracket 88 acceleration sensor

Claims (1)

A central axis of rotation in a horizontal direction or an inclined direction; a drum that accommodates laundry and performs a rotational movement; a water tub that rotatably includes the drum and is elastically supported in a swingable manner in the washing machine body; A transfer fitting that fixes the water tank and the washing machine body during transport of the washing machine, an acceleration sensor that can detect vibration components in a plurality of directions fixed to the water tank, and an acceleration detection unit that detects an acceleration output of the acceleration sensor; A displacement calculator that calculates the longitudinal or vertical acceleration output of the aquarium as a longitudinal or vertical displacement; a motor that rotationally drives the drum; a rotational speed detector that detects the number of revolutions of the motor; Controls the rotation of the motor based on the detection output of the rotation speed detection unit, and controls the series of processes such as washing, rinsing and dehydration, and transmits and receives control signals to and from the control unit. A force setting unit and a display unit, wherein the control unit generates a predetermined acceleration torque in the motor in a cloth amount detection step, accelerates the rotation of the drum, and a primary resonance frequency of a vibration system such as a water tank The following control is performed to increase the rotational speed to N2 and to maintain the rotational speed of N2 for ts seconds, and a signal from an acceleration sensor attached to the water tank is detected during the ts seconds, and the water tank is moved back and forth or vertically. Acceleration is detected by the acceleration detection unit, the acceleration output is calculated as a displacement in the front-rear direction or the vertical direction by the displacement calculation unit, and when it is smaller than a preset reference value, it is detected that there is a transfer bracket, A washing machine displaying on the display means that the transfer bracket has not been released.