JP2021186556A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a washing machine capable of performing more appropriate operation control based on a cloth deviation state, by estimating a position where the cloth deviation occurs in a washing tub of the washing machine.SOLUTION: A washing machine includes a washing tub, an outer tub, a control part, and vibration detection means. The washing tub stores laundry. The outer tub rotatably supports the washing tub, and stores the washing tub inside. The control part controls a washing operation of the washing tub. The vibration detection means detects vibration information of the outer tub, and outputs it to the control part. The control part determines the deviation state of laundry in the washing tub, by the feature amount of the vibration data continuous for at least one cycle or more which is acquired by the vibration detection means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a washing machine.

The washing machine may vibrate abnormally due to the uneven distribution of the cloth that is the laundry put into the washing machine. As a method of detecting such abnormal vibration, an acceleration sensor is attached to the upper part of the washing tub of the washing machine, the signal measured by the acceleration sensor is measured, and the measured signal of the acceleration sensor is compared with the threshold value. A method for discriminating vibration is known. However, with this method, it is difficult to estimate the position where the cloth is biased in the washing tub of the washing machine.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-131592

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a washing machine capable of performing more appropriate operation control based on the state of the cloth bias by estimating the position where the cloth bias occurs in the washing tub of the washing machine. To provide.

The washing machine of the embodiment has a washing tub, an outer tub, a control unit, and a vibration detecting means. The washing tub houses laundry. The outer tub rotatably supports the washing tub and houses the washing tub inside. The control unit controls the washing operation of the washing tub. The vibration detecting means detects the vibration information of the outer tank and outputs it to the control unit. The control unit determines the biased state of the laundry in the washing tub based on the feature amount of the continuous vibration data acquired by the vibration detecting means for at least one cycle or more.

A cross-sectional view perpendicular to the front-rear direction of the washing machine of the embodiment. The block diagram which shows a part of the structure of the washing machine of embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of the washing process of the washing machine of embodiment. The figure which shows the time series data of the two-axis accelerometer of the washing machine of embodiment. A two-dimensional distribution diagram of time-series data of the two-axis accelerometer of the washing machine of the embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of the dehydration operation of the washing machine of embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of determining the cloth bias state of the washing machine of embodiment. The block diagram which shows a part of the structure of the washing machine of embodiment. The block diagram which shows a part of the structure of the washing machine of embodiment.

Hereinafter, the washing machine according to the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, configurations having the same or similar functions are designated by the same reference numerals. Then, the duplicate description of those configurations may be omitted.

In the present specification, the installation surface side of the washing machine, that is, the vertically lower side is the lower side of the washing machine, and the side opposite to the installation surface, that is, the vertically upper side is the upper side of the washing machine. In addition, the left and right are defined based on the direction in which the user standing in front of the washing machine sees the washing machine. In addition, the side closer to the user standing in front of the washing machine when viewed from the washing machine is defined as "front", and the side far from the washing machine is defined as "rear". As used herein, the "horizontal width direction" means the left-right direction in the above definition. As used herein, the "depth direction" means the front-back direction in the above definition. In the figure, the + X direction is the right direction, the −X direction is the left direction, the + Y direction is the rear direction, the −Y direction is the front direction, the + Z direction is the upward direction, and the −Z direction is the downward direction.

The configuration of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. First, the overall configuration of the washing machine 1 will be described. However, the washing machine 1 does not have to have all of the configurations described below, and some configurations may be omitted as appropriate.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the front-rear direction of the washing machine 1.
The washing machine 1 of the embodiment includes, for example, a housing 11, a top cover 12, a water tank (outer tank) 13, a rotary tank 14, a pulsator 15, and a motor 16. The washing machine 1 is a so-called vertical axis type fully automatic washing machine in which the rotation axis O of the rotary tub 14 faces in the vertical direction. The washing machine 1 is not limited to the vertical axis type, and may be a horizontal axis type so-called drum type washing machine in which the rotation axis of the rotary tub is horizontally or downwardly inclined.

The housing 11 is formed of, for example, a steel plate in a rectangular box shape as a whole. The top cover 12 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin and is provided on the upper part of the housing 11. The top cover 12 is provided with a washing lid 4 that opens and closes the entrance and exit of the laundry so as to be openable and closable. The water tub 13 and the rotary tub 14 function as a dehydration tub and a washing tub for accommodating clothes to be washed. The water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14 are provided in the housing 11. The water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14 are configured in the shape of a container having an open upper surface. The water tank 13 is elastically suspended and supported via a vibration isolator mainly composed of suspension rods 18 provided at the four corners of the housing 11 and coil springs (not shown). The central axes of the water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14 are oriented in the vertical direction. The rotary tank 14 has a large number of dehydration holes 8 on the peripheral wall portion and a balance ring 9 on the upper end portion. Each dehydration hole 8 penetrates the peripheral wall portion of the rotary tank 14 in the thickness direction and communicates the inside and outside of the rotary tank 14. The arrangement of the dehydration holes 8 arranged on the peripheral wall portion of the rotary tank 14 is not particularly limited.

The motor 16 has a flat columnar appearance having a diameter smaller than that of the water tank 13, and is assembled to the lower side of the water tank 13 so that the rotation axis O passes through the center thereof. The motor 16 has a shaft 17, a rotor (rotor) 161 and a stator (stator) (not shown). The shaft 17 is connected to the rotor 161 and rotates in accordance with the rotation of the rotor 161. The rotation axis of the shaft 17 coincides with the rotation axis O.

The shaft 17 is connected to the rotary tank 14 and the pulsator 15 via a clutch mechanism (not shown). The clutch mechanism selectively transmits the rotation of the motor 16 to the rotary tank 14 and the pulsator 15. During washing and rinsing, the motor 16 and the clutch mechanism transmit the driving force of the motor 16 to the pulsator 15 in a state where the rotation of the rotary tank 14 is stopped to directly drive the pulsator 15 in forward and reverse rotation at a low speed. On the other hand, the motor 16 and the clutch mechanism transmit the driving force of the motor 16 to the rotary tank 14 at the time of dehydration or the like to rotationally drive the rotary tank 14 and the pulsator 15 in one direction at high speed.

A drain hose is connected to the drain port 131 formed at the bottom of the water tank 13 via a drain valve 132. The water in the water tank 13 flows out from the drain port 131 and is drained to the outside through the drain valve 132. When the drain valve 132 is opened, the water in the rotary tank 14 and the water tank 13 is discharged to the outside of the machine through the drain hose. In this case, the clutch mechanism and the drain valve 132 are switched and operated in conjunction with each other by the switching motor 133 provided on the lower surface of the bottom of the water tank 13. Specifically, when the drain valve 132 is opened by the switching motor 133, the clutch mechanism is switched so that the pulsator 15 and the rotary tank 14 are integrally rotated by the motor 16. Further, when the drain valve 132 is closed, the clutch mechanism is switched by the motor 16 so that only the pulsator 15 is independently rotated. It should be noted that an electromagnetic solenoid may be used instead of the switching motor 133.

As shown in FIG. 1, an operation panel 21 is provided on the front portion of the upper surface of the top cover 12. The operation panel 21 is provided with a display unit and an operation input unit that receives operations from the user. As shown in FIG. 2, the top cover 12 is provided with a water supply valve 38 for supplying water into the rotary tank 14 and the water tank 13, and a water level sensor 34 for detecting the water level in the water tank 13. .. A water supply hose connected to a faucet (not shown) is connected to the water supply valve 38, and when the water supply valve 38 is opened, tap water enters the rotary tank 14 and eventually the water tank 13 through a water injection port (not shown). Be supplied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a part of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment. A control unit 20 for controlling the operation of the washing machine 1 is provided in the housing 11 of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment. The control unit 20 is realized by a computer having a microcomputer, a timer, or the like. As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 20 includes a communication unit 30, an operation panel 21, a rotation sensor 32, a water level sensor 34, an acceleration sensor 19, a switching motor 133, a motor 16, a water supply valve 38, a drain valve 132, and a circulation. The pump 42 and the drying unit 44 are connected.

The communication unit 30 is, for example, a wireless module including an antenna and a high frequency circuit. As shown in FIG. 9, which will be described later, the communication unit 30 can communicate with the communication unit 301 of the server 2 via, for example, the gateway 3 and the network.

The motor 16 is, for example, a brushless DC motor, and drives the rotary tank 14 to rotate in both forward and reverse directions. The rotation sensor 32 is provided on the rotation shaft of the motor 16 and detects the rotation position of the motor 16. The rotation sensor 32 outputs information regarding the detected rotation position of the motor 16 to the control unit 20.

The water level sensor 34 is provided on the upper part of the housing 11, detects the water level of the water stored in the water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14, and outputs the information to the control unit 20.

The acceleration sensor 19 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the water tank 13. The acceleration sensor 19 detects the magnitude of the shaking of the water tank 13 when the washing machine 1 is operated. For example, the acceleration sensor 19 can detect the acceleration of shaking in the vertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the front-rear direction of the water tank 13. The acceleration sensor 19 detects the magnitude of the shaking of the water tank 13 and outputs vibration information regarding the shaking of the water tank 13 to the control unit 20. As shown in FIG. 1, the acceleration sensor 19 is attached to the upper part of the outer peripheral surface of the water tank 13, but is not limited thereto. The acceleration sensor 19 of the embodiment can be appropriately arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the water tank 13 as long as it can detect the magnitude of the shaking of the water tank 13.

The water supply valve 38 is, for example, an electromagnetic on-off valve, and is provided in the water supply valve unit. Based on the control from the control unit 20, the valve open state and the valve closed state of the water supply valve 38 are switched. When the water supply valve 38 is in the valve open state, tap water supplied to the water supply valve unit is supplied to the water tank 13 via a washing agent charging port or an automatic charging mechanism (not shown).

The drain valve 132 is, for example, an electromagnetic on-off valve, and is provided at the drain port 131 of the water tank 13. Based on the control from the control unit 20, the open state and the closed state of the drain valve 132 are switched. When the drain valve 132 is in the open state, the water stored in the water tank 13 is discharged to the outside of the washing machine 1.

The suction port of the circulation pump 42 sucks the water stored in the water tank 13 through the filter unit based on the control from the control unit 20, and circulates the sucked water in the water tank 13.

Based on the control from the control unit 20, the drying unit 44 circulates and supplies warm air into the water tank 13 to dry the clothes. The drying unit 44 includes, for example, a circulation duct and a blower fan and a heater provided in the circulation duct. The drying unit 44 may include, for example, a dehumidifying means such as a heat pump provided in the circulation duct.

The control unit 20 controls each mechanism such as the motor 16, the water supply valve 38, the drain valve 132, and the circulation pump 42 according to the operation control program based on the operation signal of the operation panel 21 by the user and the detection signal of the water level sensor 34. do. The control unit 20 controls the above-mentioned configuration of the washing machine 1 and executes a washing operation including each step such as a washing step, a rinsing step, and a dehydration step. In the washing step and the rinsing step, the control unit 20 appropriately drives the circulation pump 42 in the water supply state up to the predetermined water level in the water tank 13, and the motor 16 drives only the pulsator 15 in the forward and reverse directions at a relatively low speed. Controls to rotate alternately at predetermined time intervals. In the dehydration process, the control unit 20 controls the pulsator 15 and the rotary tank 14 to be integrally and continuously rotated at high speed in one direction by the motor 16. As shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 20 of the embodiment is provided in the top cover 12, but is not limited thereto.

Hereinafter, the flow of the washing operation process of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, when the washing operation of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment is started, the control unit 20 senses the weight of the clothes put into the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 as laundry (S10). For example, the control unit 20 controls the motor 16 of the washing machine 1 to rotate at a constant rotation speed in a state where only clothes are charged without charging water into the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1. The load current of the motor 16 may be measured. Further, the control unit 20 may measure the rotation speed of the motor 16 by passing a constant current through the motor 16 of the washing machine 1. The control unit 20 acquires the weight of the laundry put into the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 and proceeds to the next step.

Next, the control unit 20 determines a washing course corresponding to the predetermined weight of the laundry based on the acquired weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14, and starts the washing operation (S20). The control unit 20 determines the washing conditions regarding, for example, the amount of water supplied into the rotary tub 14 and the water tub 13, the amount of detergent, and the washing time based on the weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14. After that, the control unit 20 supplies the amount of water and the detergent corresponding to the weight of the laundry into the water tank 13, controls the motor 16, and reverses the pulsator 15 to perform the washing operation.

The control unit 20 can also start the washing operation and determine the cloth quality of the clothes that are the laundry put into the rotary tank 14 (S30). By measuring the fluctuation of the current flowing through the motor 16 by a known method, the control unit 20 can detect to some extent whether or not the cloth quality of clothing, for example, the cloth material easily contains water. The control unit 20 can modify the method of controlling the motor 16 in the washing operation based on the acquired information on the weight of the clothes and the cloth quality of the clothes.

The control unit 20 can start the washing operation and detect the uneven distribution of the laundry in the rotary tub 14, that is, the uneven cloth of the laundry. The details of the step (S40) for determining the state of the cloth bias of the laundry will be described later. When the control unit 20 completes the washing operation for the laundry in the predetermined washing course, the control unit 20 ends the washing operation (S50). When the washing operation is completed, the control unit 20 controls to open the drain valve 132, discharges the water in the water tank 13 to the outside of the washing machine 1, and proceeds to the next step.

After the water in the water tank 13 is almost discharged, the control unit 20 controls and switches the clutch mechanism so that the pulsator 15 and the rotary tank 14 are integrally rotated by the motor 16 to start the dehydration operation (S60). .. The details of the step of determining the cloth bias state by combining the results of weight sensing of clothes, which are laundry, when the washing machine 1 starts the dehydration operation will be described later.

When the washing machine 1 starts the dehydration operation in the rotary tub 14, if the distribution of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is biased, the vibration of the washing machine 1 increases, a loud abnormal noise is generated, or the washing machine There is a possibility that 1 may move from a fixed position. Further, for example, when the rotation speed is high (for example, 200 RPM) during the dehydration operation, the vibration of the laundry containing water and the water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14 becomes larger due to the resonance phenomenon, and the washing machine becomes larger. It may break down. Therefore, in the dehydration operation of the washing machine 1, for example, it is preferable to set a long dehydration time in a region where the rotation speed of the motor 16 is relatively low to avoid such a resonance phenomenon and reduce vibration. Alternatively, in the dehydration operation of the washing machine 1, when the vibration of the water tank 13 and the rotary tank 14 exceeds a certain magnitude, it is necessary to detect it and stop the dehydration operation.

Based on such a situation, the control unit 20 determines the biased state of the distribution of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 based on the information indicating the vibration components in the plurality of directions acquired by the acceleration sensor 19 (S70). The details of the step in which the washing machine 1 of the embodiment determines the bias of the cloth in the dehydration operation will be described later.

When the control unit 20 determines the biased state of the distribution of the laundry in the rotary tub 14, the control unit 20 can appropriately change the control for the motor 16. For example, when the laundry in the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 is biased upward in the vertical direction, a resonance phenomenon occurs in the water tub 13 when the rotation speed of the motor 16 is about 200 RPM during the dehydration operation. In order to avoid this phenomenon, the control unit 20 performs the dehydration operation at a rotation speed near the resonance point of the water tank 13 by setting a long time for the motor 16 to perform the dehydration operation at a lower rotation speed. Save time. This makes it possible to reduce the resonance of the water tank 13 during the dehydration operation.

For example, when the laundry in the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 is biased downward in the vertical direction, the laundry is near the bottom of the rotary tub 14. Therefore, the control unit 20 reduces the amount of water to be injected into the rotary tub 14 and the water tub 13 in order to correct the state in which the laundry is biased toward the lower side of the rotary tub 14. Further, for example, when the laundry in the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 is biased to both the upper side and the lower side in the vertical direction, it can be predicted that the shaking of the water tub 13 becomes large. Therefore, the control unit 20 stops the motor 16 early and starts the dehydration retry promptly. Further, when the laundry is entangled with each other during the washing operation and the cloth bias can be predicted, the control unit 20 loosens the entangled laundry by setting the cycle of the forward / reverse operation of the washing operation to be short, and the situation of the cloth bias. It may be changed to the operation which eliminates.

The control unit 20 can perform optimum control according to each state by determining the biased state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14. When the control unit 20 ends the optimum dehydration operation according to the biased state of the selected material (S80), the washing operation process of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment ends.

Hereinafter, a step of determining the biased state of the laundry executed by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 7. FIG. 4 shows time-series data of acceleration in two directions of the water tank 13 acquired by using the acceleration sensor 19. FIG. 5 shows the distribution of the bidirectional acceleration data of the water tank 13 acquired by using the acceleration sensor 19. 4 and 5 show, for example, acceleration data of the water tank 13 in the vertical direction and the front-back direction. However, since the acceleration in the left-right direction of the water tank 13 has the same tendency as the acceleration in the front-back direction, the acceleration sensor 19 may be used to acquire the acceleration in the up-down direction and the left-right direction of the water tank 13.

FIG. 4 is obtained by multiplying the time-series data of the accelerations in the vertical direction and the front-back direction of the water tank 13 in each cloth biased state. FIG. 4 is created, for example, by setting the rotation speed of the motor 16 to about 130 RPM during the dehydration operation and arranging a load of the same weight at each of the upward bias, the downward bias, and the vertically opposed bias. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing time-series data obtained by multiplying the sensor values of the vertical and longitudinal accelerations acquired by the acceleration sensor 19 when the washing machine 1 is in the dehydration operation. As shown in FIG. 4, this multiplication value is continuous with a constant period with respect to time. The laundry shown in FIG. 4 (a) is biased upward, the laundry shown in FIG. 4 (b) is biased downward, and the laundry shown in FIG. 4 (c) is vertically biased. Waveforms with different characteristics are formed from the case of facing bias.

FIG. 5 shows a two-dimensional distribution of time-series data of acceleration in the vertical direction and the front-back direction of the water tank 13 corresponding to each cloth bias state. FIG. 5 is created by measuring time-series data of acceleration in the vertical direction and the front-back direction of the water tank 13 corresponding to each cloth bias state over a plurality of cycles. When the laundry shown in FIG. 5A is biased upward, the laundry shown in FIG. 5B is biased downward, and the laundry shown in FIG. 5C is vertically opposed to each other. In the case of bias, a distribution map of different features is formed.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, since the characteristics of the figures corresponding to the different cloth bias states are different, it is possible to discriminate the different cloth bias states by using these figures. When the weight of the laundry in the dehydration operation is different, the scale of the figure corresponding to each cloth bias state shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 changes, but the shape of the figure corresponding to the different load is similar. Therefore, the control unit 20 can determine the cloth bias state by using the acceleration data acquired by the acceleration sensor 19 based on the shapes of different figures, in other words, the patterns of different figures. Conventionally, when vibration is detected using an acceleration sensor, it may not be possible to accurately measure the vibration state unless the rotation speed of the water tank 13 reaches a value close to the speed at which resonance occurs. In the washing machine 1 of the present embodiment, the cloth bias state can be determined by identifying the pattern of the figure corresponding to each cloth bias state.

As described above, based on the acceleration time series data of the water tank 13 acquired by the acceleration sensor 19, the feature amount corresponding to the different cloth bias state, that is, the pattern of the figure can be discriminated. However, different cloth bias states may be discriminated by using other feature quantities. For example, in the washing machine 1 of the embodiment, a rotation sensor 32 of the motor 16, a current sensor, or the like may be used.

With reference to FIG. 6, a step of determining a cloth bias state by combining the results of weight sensing of clothes as laundry at the start of the dehydration operation of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment will be described. In the washing machine 1 of the present embodiment, not only the distribution of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 but also the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 affects the vibration state of the water tub 13. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, when the dehydration operation in the washing machine 1 starts (S60), the control unit 20 uses, for example, the time-series data of the acceleration acquired from the acceleration sensor 19, and the vibration information of the water tank 13. (S62). Then, the control unit 20 refers to the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 acquired in the weight sensing step (S10), and executes a step of determining the cloth bias state in the rotary tub 14.

When the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is less than 1 kilogram (S641: YES), the control unit 20 selects the bias determination algorithm 1 (S661) and determines the cloth bias state in the rotary tub 14. When the control unit 20 determines the operation of the motor 16 based on the cloth bias state determined by the bias determination algorithm 1 (S681), the control unit 20 proceeds to the next dehydration operation step.

When the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is 1 kg or more (S641: No) and less than 3 kg (S642: YES), the control unit 20 selects the bias determination algorithm 2 (S662). The cloth bias state in the rotary tank 14 is determined. When the control unit 20 determines the operation of the motor 16 based on the cloth bias state determined by the bias determination algorithm 2 (S682), the control unit 20 proceeds to the next dehydration operation step.

When the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is 3 kg or more (S642: No) and less than 6 kg (S643: YES), the control unit 20 selects the bias determination algorithm 3 (S663). The cloth bias state in the rotary tank 14 is determined. When the control unit 20 determines the operation of the motor 16 based on the cloth bias state determined by the bias determination algorithm 3 (S683), the control unit 20 proceeds to the next dehydration operation step.

When the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is 6 kg or more (S643: No), the control unit 20 selects the bias determination algorithm 4 (S664) and determines the cloth bias state in the rotary tub 14. When the control unit 20 determines the operation of the motor 16 based on the cloth bias state determined by the bias determination algorithm 4 (S684), the control unit 20 proceeds to the next dehydration operation step.

The bias determination algorithm 1, the bias determination algorithm 2, the bias determination algorithm 3, and the bias determination algorithm 4 described above are algorithms optimized for each weight. As shown in FIG. 6, by combining the total weight of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 and the vibration state of the water tub 13 acquired by using the acceleration sensor 19, the cloth bias state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 can be determined. It can be judged with higher accuracy. Further, the possibility that the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is entangled with each other and the method of draining water during the dehydration operation differ depending on the cloth quality of the laundry. Information on the quality of the cloth may be combined.

With reference to FIG. 7, a step (S70) of determining a biased state of the distribution of laundry in the rotary tub 14 of the washing machine 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, when the control unit 20 determines that the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is biased upward (S721: YES), the motor operation corresponding to the cloth biased state biased upward with respect to the motor 16. (S741) to end the cloth bias determination.

When the control unit 20 determines that the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is not biased upward (S721: NO) but is biased downward (S722: YES), the laundry is transferred to the motor 16 with respect to the motor 16. The motor operation corresponding to the cloth bias state that is biased downward is changed (S742), and the cloth bias determination is completed.

When the control unit 20 determines that the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is biased both vertically (S723: YES), the control unit 20 changes the motor operation corresponding to the cloth bias state in which the laundry is biased both vertically with respect to the motor 16. (S742), and the cloth bias determination is completed.

When the control unit 20 determines that the laundry in the rotary tub 14 does not correspond to any of the cloth bias states (S723: NO), the control unit 20 does not change the operation of the motor 16 and ends the bias determination as it is. In this case, the laundry seems to be located near the center of the washing tub 14. The control unit 20 can classify and determine the biased state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 into a plurality of patterns. For example, the control unit 20 of the present embodiment changes the biased state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 into three patterns: a cloth biased state biased upward, a cloth biased state biased downward, and a cloth biased state biased both vertically. It can be classified into and judged. However, the biased state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 is not limited to the above three states. For example, in the rotary tub 14, the biased state of the laundry may correspond to the state between the above three states. At this time, as will be described later, the control unit 20 can express the biased state of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 with a probability.

The determination of the cloth bias state executed by the control unit 20 of the washing machine 1 of the above-described embodiment may be performed by using machine learning. At this time, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, in the washing machine 1 of the embodiment, the control unit 20 may include an arithmetic processing unit 201 and an inference determination unit 202. As shown in FIG. 8, in the washing machine 1 of the embodiment, the vibration detecting means 50 acquires the vibration information related to the vibration of the water tank 13 and inputs it to the arithmetic processing unit 201 of the control unit 20. The vibration detecting means 50 may use the acceleration sensor 19 of the embodiment, or may use other configurations such as a rotation sensor 32 of the motor 16 and a current sensor. The control unit 20 calculates data for the arithmetic processing unit 201 to perform the cloth bias determination using the vibration information. As a calculation result, the arithmetic processing unit 201 obtains, for example, a waveform obtained by multiplying the acceleration time-series data shown in FIG. 4 or a graphic relating to the distribution of the acceleration time-series data shown in FIG. It is input to the inference determination unit 202 to determine the cloth bias.

In the washing machine 1 of the embodiment, the control unit 20 uses machine learning to determine the cloth bias state, so that the cloth bias state can be appropriately determined even when it is difficult to determine the normal state. By using machine learning, the control unit 20 can express the state of the cloth bias of the laundry in the rotary tub 14 with a probability. For example, the control unit 20 has a 70% probability of upward bias, a 20% probability of downward bias, and a 10% probability of both vertical bias regarding the state of cloth bias of the laundry in the rotary tub 14. It may be calculated that the cloth bias state is finally determined to be the upper bias.

As shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 20 may store the result of performing machine learning a plurality of times in the reasoning determination unit 2020. The control unit 20 can appropriately determine the cloth bias state by machine learning the feature amount related to the vibration information and the cloth bias state of the laundry without setting the cloth bias determination determination rule in advance. Is. The control unit 20 may incorporate the learning result (learned data) by machine learning a plurality of times into a control device including a microcomputer or the like in advance. In the washing machine 1 of the embodiment, by incorporating only the inference part which is the learning result into the microcomputer, it is possible to perform inference using machine learning even with a relatively inexpensive microcomputer, and it is possible to perform highly responsive processing. be.

The washing machine 1 of the embodiment may be connected to a network via a gateway 3 and may be configured to be able to communicate with a server. As shown in FIG. 9, the washing machine 1 may include a vibration detecting means 50, an arithmetic processing unit 201, and a communication unit 30. The communication unit 30 of the washing machine 1 of the embodiment can communicate with the communication unit 301 of the server 2 via the gateway 3 and the network. The server 2 includes a communication unit 301 and a bias determination unit 302. The network includes, for example, one or more of the Internet, a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, a WAN (Wide Area Network), a LAN (Local Area Network), a public line, a telephone line, a radio base station, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 9, the vibration detecting means 50 of the washing machine 1 acquires the vibration information regarding the vibration of the water tank 13 and inputs it to the arithmetic processing unit 201. The arithmetic processing unit 201 of the washing machine 1 calculates data for performing the cloth bias determination using the vibration information, and transmits the data to the server 2 via the communication unit 30. The server 2 inputs the data transferred from the washing machine 1 to the bias determination unit 302, and the bias determination unit 302 uses the machine learning result to determine the cloth bias state. The server 2 transmits the cloth bias state determined by the bias determination unit 302 to the washing machine 1 via the communication unit 301. As a result, the bias determination unit 302 of the server 2 can learn and update using the data of the washing machine 1 that is constantly transmitted, and can determine the cloth bias state with higher accuracy.

It is also possible to determine the cloth bias state using the user's installation environment, laundry clothes information, history, etc., and customize the operating operation of the washing machine 1 according to the operating environment of the washing machine 1 for each user. Is. For example, the strength of vibration transmission to the floor and the aspect of vibration of the washing machine differ depending on the material and inclination of the floor of the user's house. As shown in FIG. 9, since the bias determination unit 302 is arranged on the server 2, machine learning can be performed based on the vibration data acquired from a plurality of users. As a result, by adding such information, it is possible to determine the cloth bias state according to the user's house, which can contribute to the improvement of accuracy and the reduction of vibration.

According to at least one embodiment described above, the vibration data representing the vibration state of the outer tub of the washing machine is continuously acquired for at least one cycle or more, and the cloth bias state of the laundry in the rotary tub of the washing machine is determined. By doing so, it is possible to reduce the vibration of the water tank caused by the unevenness of the cloth of the laundry and reduce the amount of water used during the washing operation of the laundry.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other embodiments, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and variations thereof are included in the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof, as are included in the scope and gist of the invention.

1 ... washing machine, 2 ... server, 3 ... gateway, 4 ... washing lid, 8 ... dehydration hole, 9 ... balance ring, 11 ... housing, 12 ... top cover, 13 ... water tank (outer tank), 14 ... rotary tank , 15 ... pulsator, 16 ... motor, 17 ... shaft, 18 ... hanging rod, 19 ... acceleration sensor, 20 ... control unit, 21 ... operation panel, 30 ... communication unit, 32 ... rotation sensor, 34 ... water level sensor, 38 ... Water supply valve, 42 ... Circulation pump, 44 ... Drying unit, 50 ... Vibration detection means, 131 ... Drain port, 132 ... Drain valve, 133 ... Switching motor, 201 ... Arithmetic processing unit, 202 ... Inference determination unit, 301 ... Communication Unit, 302 ... Bias judgment unit, O ... Rotation axis

Claims (13)

A washing tub that houses laundry and
An outer tub that rotatably supports the washing tub and houses the washing tub inside,
A control unit that controls the washing operation of the washing tub,
A vibration detecting means that detects vibration information of the outer tank and outputs it to the control unit.
Equipped with
The control unit determines the biased state of the laundry in the washing tub based on the feature amount of the continuous vibration data acquired by the vibration detecting means for at least one cycle or more.
Washing machine. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the control unit classifies and determines the biased state of the laundry in the washing tub into a plurality of patterns. The washing machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the vibration detecting means has a sensor for detecting the acceleration of the outer tub of the washing machine. The washing machine according to claim 3, wherein the control unit determines a biased state of the laundry based on a waveform diagram or a two-dimensional distribution diagram generated by using the time-series data of the acceleration of the outer tub. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the control unit changes an algorithm for determining a biased state of the laundry based on a combination of the cloth amount information of the laundry and the cloth quality. .. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the control unit changes the rotation control of the washing tub according to the biased state of the laundry. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the control unit changes the amount of water used in the washing operation according to the biased state of the laundry. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the control unit changes the rotation control of the washing tub according to the biased state of the laundry in the washing operation. The control unit estimates the biased state of the laundry based on the trained data obtained by machine learning the relationship between the feature amount of the vibration data and the biased state of the laundry, according to claims 1 to 8. The washing machine according to any one item. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the learning result of machine learning is incorporated in the control unit in advance. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, which is configured to be connectable to a server via a network and determines the biased state of the laundry on the server. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the information for each user is combined to determine the biased state of the laundry. The washing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the control unit controls the washing operation of the washing tub according to the operating environment of each user.

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