JP2023166008A - Drum-type washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a drum-type washing machine capable of reducing pressure loss while suppressing intrusion of water into a circulation air passage during dewatering.SOLUTION: A drum-type washing machine comprises: an outer tub having an air inlet and an air outlet; a drum provided in the outer tub so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis and having a group of dewatering holes in a periphery wall; a circulation air passage provided outside the outer tub for bringing the air inlet and the air outlet into communication with each other; a fan device for circulating air in the drum through the circulation air passage; and dehumidifying means provided in the circulation air passage. In the periphery wall of the drum, an opposed surface part opposed to the air outlet is made to be a non-formation area of the group of the dewatering holes in which the group of the dewatering holes is not formed. The size of the air outlet is expanded according to that of the non-formation area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a drum type washing machine.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, as a drum-type washing machine, for example, a washer/dryer having a clothes washing function and a clothes drying function is known. In the washer/dryer, a circulating air passage is provided outside the water tank that functions as a drying room, and the air in the water tank is circulated through the circulation air passage by the blowing action of an air blower, and the circulating air is dehumidified and heated. This is done using a heat pump evaporator and condenser.
In this type of device, in the dewatering process, the drum is rotated at high speed to perform centrifugal dewatering of the laundry (clothes). At this time, there is a problem in that the water dehydrated from the clothes in the drum enters the circulation air path from the exhaust port in the peripheral wall of the outer water tank and wets the filter for capturing lint in the circulation air path. Therefore, the center of the exhaust hose on the exhaust port side, which is the inflow side of the circulation air path, is shifted in the left and right direction between the inflow side and the outflow side to suppress water from entering the filter. (For example, see Patent Document 1).

JP2017-74187A

However, in the above-mentioned exhaust hose, a pressure loss occurs between the inflow side portion and the outflow side portion which are shifted in the left-right direction, and there is a possibility that the circulating air volume and flow speed are reduced, and the drying efficiency is also reduced.
Therefore, the present invention provides a drum-type washing machine that can reduce pressure loss while suppressing water from entering the circulation air path during dewatering.

The drum-type washing machine of the embodiment includes: an outer tank having an air supply port and an exhaust port; a drum rotatably provided in the outer tank around a horizontal axis and having a group of dewatering holes on a peripheral wall; a circulating air passage provided to communicate between the air supply port and the exhaust port on the outside; a fan device configured to circulate air in the drum through the circulating air passage; and a fan device provided in the circulating air path. a dehumidifying means having a dehumidifying means, wherein a surface portion of the peripheral wall of the drum that faces the exhaust port is defined as a non-forming area of the dehydrating hole group, and the size of the exhaust port is set to be the area where the dehydrating hole group is not formed. The structure is such that it expands to fit the formation area.

A longitudinal side view schematically showing the inside of the washer/dryer in the first embodiment Rear view schematically showing the configuration of a washer/dryer together with a heat pump Vertical side view showing the vicinity of the exhaust duct together with the filter Front view near the exhaust duct Cross-sectional view showing the positional relationship between the dewatering hole group and the exhaust port on the drum peripheral wall A cross-sectional plan view showing the positional relationship between the dewatering hole group and the exhaust port on the drum peripheral wall. Diagram showing the bellows part in its natural state Diagram showing the bellows part in a compressed state A plan view showing an enlarged view of the filter portion arranged in the filter accommodating part. A diagram showing the second dehydration hole in the drum peripheral wall of the second embodiment together with the first dehydration hole A transverse plan view showing the form of the exhaust port of the third embodiment

This embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. The washer/dryer 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a so-called horizontal-shaft drum-type washing machine that has the functions of a washing machine for washing the clothes in the drum 10 and a clothes dryer for drying the clothes in the drum 10. It's a washing machine.

An outer box 2 forming the outer shell of the washer/dryer 1 has a rectangular box shape. The front part 2a of the outer box 2 is formed in a slightly downwardly inclined shape, and the front part 2a is provided with a door 3 (not shown) for opening and closing a laundry entrance/exit. Although detailed illustration is omitted, an operation panel 4 (see FIG. 1) including a power on/off key and a display section is provided at the front of the top plate section 2b of the outer box 2. The display unit has a touch panel that accepts touch operations from the user, and can display various displays to the user and set driving courses and the like.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, inside the outer box 2, a drum 10 and a water tank 7 for housing the drum 10 are provided. The drum 10 is a cylindrical rotating tank with a bottom that can store clothes, and the water tank 7 is a cylindrical outer tank with a bottom that can store water.

The water tank 7 is elastically supported by a suspension (not shown) in a sideways orientation with its axis pointing in the front-rear direction, and in a slightly upwardly tilted state. The front opening of the water tank 7 is connected to the laundry inlet/outlet via a bellows 7a. Although not shown, a water supply mechanism for supplying water into the water tank 7 is provided in the upper part of the outer box 2, and this water supply mechanism is connected to a water faucet via a water supply hose.

A drain port 7b is provided at the bottom of the rear side of the water tank 7. A drain pipe 9 is connected to the drain port 7b via a drain valve 8. When water is supplied into the water tank 7 from the water supply mechanism with the drain valve 8 closed, the water is stored in the water tank 7. As the drain valve 8 is opened, the water stored in the water tank 7 is discharged to the outside of the machine through the drain pipe 9.

The drum 10, like the water tank 7, is arranged horizontally with its axis facing in the front-rear direction, and is inclined slightly upward. The front opening of the drum 10 communicates with the front opening of the water tank 7 and the laundry entrance, and by opening the door 3, the drum 10 flows from the laundry entrance through the front openings of the water tank 7 and the drum 10. You can take clothes in and out. The drum 10 is provided with a large number of dehydration holes 10a, as shown in FIG. The dehydration hole 10a functions as a water passage hole during a washing operation and as a ventilation hole during a drying operation.

A drum motor 11 made of, for example, a DC brushless motor is provided on the back side of the water tank 7 . The rotation shaft of the drum motor 11 passes through the back surface of the water tank 7 and is connected to the back surface of the drum 10 , and the drum 10 is directly rotationally driven by the drum motor 11 . In this case, the drum 10 is continuously rotated in the normal rotation direction, that is, in the clockwise direction (direction of arrow B in FIG. 4) when viewed from the front, in the dewatering process described later, and the normal rotation and reverse rotation are repeated in the washing process and the rinsing process. It will be done.

As shown in FIG. 1, an exhaust port 12 for discharging air is provided at the upper right portion of the front side of the aquarium 7, and an exhaust port 12 is provided at the upper left portion of the back side shown in FIG. 2 for supplying drying air. An air supply port 13 is provided. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a circulation air passage 15 is provided inside the outer box 2 to communicate between the air supply port 13 and the exhaust port 12 on the outside of the water tank 7. The circulation air passage 15 is connected to the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7 at its inlet side, and connected to the air supply port 13 at its outlet side.

Specifically, the circulation air passage 15 is configured as a duct in which an exhaust duct 16, a filter duct 17, a rear exhaust duct 18, a heat pump duct 19, and an air supply duct 20 are connected in this order. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, 4, etc., the exhaust duct 16 has its lower end connected to the exhaust port 12, and its upper end connected to the inlet of the filter duct 17 via the bellows part 21. . The filter duct 17 is provided extending rearward from the upper right side of the outer box 2, and has its rear end connected to the upper end of the rear exhaust duct 18. A lint filter 22 is provided within the filter duct 17 to capture lint such as lint from the drying air. Details of the exhaust duct 16 and the filter duct 17 will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 2, the rear exhaust duct 18 extends downward behind the water tank 7, and its lower end is connected to the right end (left end in the figure) of the heat pump duct 19. The heat pump duct 19 extends in the left-right direction at a position near the rear of the lower part of the outer box 2, and a fan device 23 is provided on the left end side (the right end side in the figure). The fan device 23 includes, for example, a centrifugal fan 23a in a fan casing 24 and a fan motor 23b for driving the centrifugal fan 23a. A lower end (base end) of the air supply duct 20 is connected to an outlet of the fan casing 24 . The air supply duct 20 is located on the left side of the outer box 2 and extends upward behind the water tank 7, and its upper end (tip) is connected to the air supply port 13.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the heat pump duct 19, an evaporator 27 and a condenser 28 that constitute the heat pump 26 are arranged in order from right to left (left and right in the figure). The heat pump 26 is configured as a refrigeration cycle in which a compressor 29, a condenser 28, a throttle valve 30 as a pressure reducing means, and an evaporator 27 are connected in a cycle through a refrigerant pipe 31, and the sealed refrigerant is connected to the refrigerant pipe. Cycle through 31. In the heat pump 26, the condenser 28 functions as a heating means for heating the drying air, and the evaporator 27 functions as a dehumidifying means for removing moisture from the drying air.

That is, in the heat pump 26, when the compressor 29 is driven during drying operation, the high temperature and high pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 29 flows into the condenser 28, where it radiates heat and is condensed. The refrigerant liquefied in the condenser 28 is depressurized through the throttle valve 30 and flows into the evaporator 27 . The refrigerant vaporized by heat exchange in the evaporator 27 is returned to the compressor 29, where it is again compressed and discharged at high temperature and high pressure, thereby performing a circulation.

By driving the fan device 23 together with the driving of the heat pump 26 described above, air in the water tank 7 (drum 10) is pumped from the exhaust port 12 to the exhaust duct 16, It passes through a filter duct 17 and a rear exhaust duct 18 to reach a heat pump duct 19. At this time, the lint and the like contained in the air passing through the filter duct 17 are captured by the lint filter 22.

Furthermore, the air that has passed through the rear exhaust duct 18 flows through the heat pump duct 19, passes through the evaporator 27 and the condenser 28 in order, and then flows into the air supply duct 20, and passes through the air supply port 13 and the dehydration hole 10a. A cycle of feeding into the drum 10 takes place. In this way, the air that has removed moisture from the clothes in the drum 10 and contains a large amount of steam passes through the evaporator 27 section in the heat pump duct 19 and is cooled, thereby condensing the steam and dehumidifying the dehumidified air. When the air passes through the condenser 28, it is heated to become dry warm air, which is again supplied into the drum 10 and used to dry clothes.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a drain tank 32 is provided at the bottom of the heat pump duct 19, and a drain pump 33 is also attached. The drain tank 32 is configured as a drain pan that receives and stores dehumidified water dehumidified by the evaporator 27 or water existing in the circulation air path 15. When the drain pump 33 is driven, the water in the drain tank 32 (including the dehumidified water) is discharged to the outside of the machine.

Although not shown, a plurality of temperature sensor groups for detecting the temperature of the refrigerant and the temperature of the dry air are provided in the main parts of the heat pump 26 and the circulation air path 15. The control device 34 that controls the overall operation of the washer/dryer 1 shown in FIG. 1 drives the heat pump 26 and the fan device 23 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor group, and rotates the drum 10 in one direction. Execute drying operation. Moreover, the control device 34 drives the drain pump 33 after performing the drying operation, and even when only the washing operation is performed, the control device 34 drives the drain pump 33 after the spin-drying process of the washing operation is completed, so that the inside of the drain tank 32 can be controlled. The structure is such that water is drained outside the machine.

In this embodiment, in the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10, the opposing surface portion 35B facing the exhaust port 12 is a region where the dehydration hole group 10a is not formed, and the size of the exhaust port 12 is expanded to match the non-formation region. . Such a configuration will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. Note that the two-dot chain line 120 shown in FIG. 6 is a tangent line passing through the rear end of the exhaust port 12, and is perpendicular to the central axis of the drum 10.

The peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10 has a cylindrical shape as a whole, and the region of the peripheral wall 35 on the front side of the two-dot chain line 120 is an opposing surface portion 35B, and the remaining region is a non-opposing surface portion 35A.
That is, in the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the non-opposed surface portion 35A is a portion that does not face the exhaust port 12 on the outside in the radial direction, and corresponds to an area other than the non-formed area. The dehydration hole group 10a consists of a large number of dehydration holes 10a formed at predetermined intervals or at a well-known array pitch (array pitch Pa in FIG. 10 described later) over substantially the entire area of the non-opposed surface portion 35A. As shown in FIG. 6, the dehydration holes 10a are all round holes having the same diameter Da, and penetrate the peripheral wall 35, which is the non-opposed surface portion 35A. Although FIG. 5 shows the dehydration holes 10a only in the cross section of the peripheral wall 35 for convenience of explanation, it is assumed that the dehydration holes 10a are formed over the entire circumference of the peripheral wall 35.

On the other hand, in the opposing surface portion 35B of the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10, not a single dehydration hole 10a is formed as a region where no dehydration hole 10a group is formed. The opposing surface portion 35B is located on the front side of the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10, facing the exhaust port 12 on the outside in the radial direction.

As shown in FIG. 5, the front part of the drum 10 where the facing surface part 35B is located has a shape that is tapered so that the front end side thereof has a slightly smaller diameter, and a front cover 36 is attached to the front end side. are doing. Although not shown, a front opening of the drum 10 is provided in the center of the front cover 36 and communicates with the laundry entrance/exit. Further, the opposing surface portion 35B has the aforementioned narrowed portion, that is, an inclined surface 37 that gradually increases in diameter as it goes from the immediate back side of the front cover 36 toward the back side.

The opposing surface portion 35B is connected to the non-opposing surface portion 35A with a relatively gentle inclination such that the opposing surface portion 35B and the non-opposing surface portion 35A form a “h” shape in cross section by the inclined surface 37 (see FIG. (see 5). Therefore, when the drum 10 is rotated at high speed in the dehydration process, the water that is dehydrated from the clothes located on the front side of the drum 10 flows along the slope 37 of the facing surface portion 35B to reach the non-facing surface portion 35A on the back side, and the water is removed. It flows out from the dehydration hole 10a of the non-opposed surface portion 35A. Therefore, in the dehydration process, even though the facing surface portion 35B in which the dehydration hole 10a is not formed can be dehydrated without any problem due to the presence of the inclined surface 37, the water dehydrated from the clothes is not absorbed into the drum 10. There is no direct flow from the dehydration hole 10a to the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the exhaust port 12 is located in the peripheral wall 7c of the water tank 7 facing the facing surface portion 35B of the drum 10, and is provided at a right-hand portion of the upper front side of the peripheral wall 7c. The exhaust port 12 opens in an elongated oval shape in the circumferential direction of the water tank 7, and is formed so that the size L2 in the circumferential direction and the size L1 in the front-rear direction are expanded to make the opening area as large as possible.

Specifically, in a plan view of FIG. 6, the length L1 of the exhaust port 12 in the front-rear direction extends from the front end of the water tank 7 to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line 120, and is a length that does not allow individual dehydration holes 10a to peek out from the exhaust port 12. It is set to In this case, the exhaust port 12 is formed by widening the corresponding opposing surface portion 35B to form a gentler slope 37, that is, by narrowing the formation region of the dehydration hole group 10a toward the back (rearward). It is possible to expand the size L1 in the front-rear direction by shifting the distance to the rear.

The size L2 (length in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 4) of the exhaust port 12 in the circumferential direction of the water tank 7 is set to be larger than L1 (L2>L1), so that the exhaust port 12 has an elliptical shape. form. In this way, even if the size L2 in the circumferential direction of the exhaust port 12 is expanded to be equal to or larger than the size L1 in the front-rear direction (L2≧L1), due to the relationship with the facing surface portion 35B, during dehydration It is possible to reduce pressure loss by increasing L1 and L2 without increasing the amount of water that enters the exhaust port 12.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the exhaust duct 16 has an oval cross section corresponding to the sizes L1 and L2 of the exhaust port 12, and has a bent portion 16b on the way from the exhaust port 12 to the filter duct 17. is provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, the exhaust duct 16 includes a lower half portion 16a extending upward from the exhaust port 12, an upper half portion 16c provided with the bellows portion 21, and a central axis 161 of the lower half portion 16a and the upper half portion 16c. The bent portion 16b is formed by bending the center axis 162 of the half portion 16c at an obtuse angle with respect to the other half portion 16c. As a result, in the exhaust duct 16, the lower half 16a is oriented in the vertical direction, which is the direction intersecting the radial direction of the drum 10 (see FIG. 4), and the bent portion 16b is oriented upward toward the filter duct 17. The bellows portion 21 is inclined so as to face.

The bellows portion 21 is made of a flexible material such as rubber, and as shown in FIG. It has a shape that is repeated alternately along the direction, and has an overall bellows shape.
The mountain fold portion 38 is a portion that is bent on the outer circumferential surface side of the bellows portion 21, and the apex of the mountain fold portion 38 protrudes outward from the inner circumferential surfaces of both the connection ports 21a and 21b. The valley fold portion 39 is a portion that is bent on the inner circumferential surface side of the bellows portion 21, and the apex of the valley fold portion protrudes inward from the inner circumferential surfaces of both connection ports 21a.

FIG. 7 shows the natural state of the bellows portion 21 in which no external force is applied, particularly in the direction of the central axis 162. In the bellows portion 21, in its natural state, the surface portions 40 between the peaks of the mountain folds 38 and the peaks of the valley folds 39 are spaced apart from each other. When an external force is applied to the bellows portion 21 in the direction of the central axis 162, the bellows portion 21 is compressed and changes from the natural state shown in FIG. 7 to the compressed state shown in FIG. 40 contacts each other. That is, by compressing the bellows portion 21, the vertices of the plurality of valley folds 39 approach each other, and the inner circumferential surface of the bellows portion 21 has a substantially planar shape in which the plurality of valley folds 39 are closely adjacent to each other. This becomes the inner peripheral surface (see Fig. 8). In this way, the bellows portion 21 is assembled into the circulation air passage 15 in such a compressed state that the surfaces 40 between the peaks of the mountain folds 38 and the peaks of the valley folds 39 are completely or almost in close contact with each other. shall be.

Thereby, the bellows portion 21 maintains the compressed state when no clothes are loaded into the drum 10 or when water is not supplied to the water tank 7. Therefore, the structure is such that water is difficult to remain on the inner surface of the bellows part 21, and mold growth, freezing, etc. caused by the water remaining in the bellows part 21 can be suppressed. In addition, in the washing process and the rinsing process, the water tank 7 sinks downward due to the presence of the clothes placed in the drum 10 and the large amount of water supplied to the water tank 7, and the bellows part 21 is released from the compressed state. becomes. Therefore, it is possible to exhibit a sufficient vibration absorption effect not only in the washing process and the rinsing process but also in the dehydration process. Furthermore, when the drying process is performed after the dehydration process, the bellows part 21 is caused by the surface parts 40 between the peaks of the mountain folds 38 and the peaks of the valley folds 39 coming into close contact with each other due to dehydration in the dehydration process. (By making the inner circumferential surface more planar), pressure loss due to the bellows shape of the inner circumferential surface can be suppressed, and a reduction in circulating air volume and noise can also be suppressed.

As shown in FIG. 3, the filter duct 17 has an overall rectangular tube shape that is long from front to back. A filter device 41 is provided at the front of the filter duct 17, and a connecting portion 21b of the exhaust duct 16 (bellows portion 21) is connected to the front side of the filter device 41. The filter duct 17 slopes gently downward toward the rear, and its rear lower end is connected to the upper end of the rear exhaust duct 18.

The filter device 41 includes a filter accommodating portion 42 in which the lint filter 22 is accommodated so as to partition off an air path within the filter duct 17. As shown in FIG. 9, the lint filter 22 includes, for example, a frame body 43 made of synthetic resin and a filter body 44 made of nonwoven fabric provided so as to close the opening of the frame body 43. The lint filter 22 has an inclined or curved shape (for example, an arc shape in the side view of FIG. 3) with a predetermined inclination with respect to the horizontal plane, and is formed into a curved plate shape with a convexity at the lower rear corner of the filter accommodating portion 42. ing.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 9, the filter accommodating portion 42 includes an upper locking portion 42b that locks the upper side of the frame 43 of the lint filter 22, and a lower locking portion 42b that locks the lower side of the frame 43. A locking portion 42c is provided. The lint filter 22 is fitted into the upper locking part 42b and the lower locking part 42c without a gap, with the upper and lower sides of the frame 43 being removably locked, respectively. Further, a plurality of small holes 43a serving as water passage portions are provided along the lower side of the frame 43 (see FIG. 9).

In the lint filter 22, the plurality of small holes 43a are arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the flow of air (direction of arrow A) passing through the frame 43 in the thickness direction and passing through the filter duct 17. Furthermore, since the lower side portion of the frame 43 in the lint filter 22, that is, the portion where the plurality of small holes 43a are formed, is located on the front end side of the bottom portion 42a of the filter accommodating portion 42 shown in FIG. It can be said that it is easy to pass through. In addition, the bottom part 42a of the filter accommodating part 42 is also called the bottom part 42a of the filter duct 17, and is distinguished from the bottom part 17a of the said duct 17 on the rear side rather than the bottom part 42a.

Note that, as also shown in FIG. 1, a filter cover 45 is provided at a portion of the top plate portion 2b of the outer box 2 that corresponds to the filter device 41. The filter cover 45 is provided with a handle portion (not shown), and the lint filter 22 can be cleaned by placing a finger on the handle portion and opening the filter cover 45.

As shown in FIG. 3, continuous bottom portions 42a and 17a extending in the front-rear direction of the filter duct 17 are downstream portions that are gently sloped downward toward the rear. Therefore, even if water enters from the exhaust duct 16 side and reaches the lint filter 22, the water flows down the surface of the lint filter 22 through the small holes 43a on the lower side to the bottom 42a. The water that has fallen in this way flows down the bottoms 42a and 17a of the filter duct 17 in order, passes through the rear exhaust duct 18, reaches the bottom of the heat pump duct 19, and is received by the drain tank 32.

In the washer/dryer 1 of the present embodiment described above, the facing surface portion 35B facing the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7 in the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10 is set as a non-forming region of the dehydration hole 10a group where the dehydration hole 10a group is not formed. , the size of the exhaust port 12 is expanded to correspond to the non-forming area.
According to this, even if the drum 10 is rotated at a relatively high speed during the dehydration process, for example, the dehydration hole 10a and the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7 do not face each other in the radial direction of the drum 10, so that water that has been dehydrated from the clothes is removed. Since the water does not flow directly from the dewatering hole 10a of the drum 10 to the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7, it is possible to suppress water from entering the circulation air path. Furthermore, if the exhaust port 12 is expanded in a range that corresponds to the area where the dehydration hole group 10a is not formed in the drum 10, the expansion of the exhaust port 12 can be done while suppressing water intrusion into the circulation air path. , pressure loss can be reduced and drying efficiency can be improved.

The opposing surface portion 35B is an inclined surface 37 located on the front side of the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10 and is inclined so that the diameter of the peripheral wall 35 increases from the front side toward the back side. Has 37. According to this, for example, water dehydrated from clothing by centrifugal dehydration in the dehydration process travels along the inclined surface 37 of the facing surface portion 35B to reach the non-facing surface portion 35A on the back side, and from the dehydration hole 10a of the non-facing surface portion 35A. It can be made to flow out. Therefore, even if there is no dehydration hole 10a in the facing surface portion 35B of the drum 10, dehydration of clothes can be prevented from occurring.

The exhaust port 12 is located in the peripheral wall 35 of the outer tank (water tank 7) facing the facing surface portion 35B of the drum 10, and the size L2 of the exhaust port 12 in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall 35 is set between the front and rear of the exhaust port 12. It was expanded so that it was equal to or larger than the directional size L1 (L2≧L1). According to this, in the case where the exhaust port 12 is enlarged, it is possible to widen the opening area of the exhaust port 12 as much as possible in the limited space facing the opposing surface portion 35B of the drum 10.

The exhaust duct 16 is provided with a bent portion 16b that is bent on the way from the exhaust port 12 to the lint filter 22 (hereinafter referred to as "filter 22"), and is provided with a bent portion 16b that is closer to the filter 22 than the bent portion 16b of the exhaust duct 16. A bellows portion 21 is provided at a certain position. According to this, water intrusion into the bellows part 21 is suppressed by the distance from the exhaust port 12, compared to a structure in which the bellows part 21 is located closer to the exhaust port 12 than the bent part 16b of the exhaust duct 16. As a result, the occurrence of mold and the like on the bellows portion 21 and freezing can be suppressed.

The bellows portion 21 is incorporated as a part of the exhaust duct 16 in a compressed state in which the surface portions 40 between the bellows-shaped mountain folds 38 and valley folds 39 are in contact with each other. According to this, in the bellows portion 21, the inner circumferential surface can be made planar so that it is difficult for water to remain, and mold growth, freezing, etc. caused by the remaining moisture can be suppressed. In addition, as mentioned above, by setting the degree of compression of the bellows part 21 during the drying process so that the surface parts 40 between the peaks of the mountain folds 38 and the peaks of the valley folds 39 come close to each other, the bellows Pressure loss due to the bellows shape of the inner peripheral surface of the portion 21, that is, resistance to the circulating air, can be suppressed, and a decrease in the amount of circulating air and noise can also be suppressed.

Since the filter 22 has an inclined or curved shape with a predetermined inclination with respect to the horizontal plane, even if water enters the filter 22 or condensation occurs, it will not flow down along the inclined or curved surface. It can be done easily. Therefore, it is possible to reduce problems such as the generation of mold and various bacteria due to the accumulation of water adhering to the filter 22, and the trouble that cleaning the filter takes time and effort.

For example, a plurality of small holes 43a are provided at the lower side of the filter 22 as a water passage section for passing water. According to this, even if water enters the filter 22 or condensation occurs, it can flow down from the filter surface through the water passage portion at the lower side, and the above-described problems can be solved. Note that the water passing portion is not limited to the plurality of small holes 43a, and the shape, number, etc. of the water passing portion may be changed as appropriate, such as forming a slit shape.

A drain tank 32 is provided to receive dehumidified water generated by the dehumidifying means or water existing in the circulation air passage 15, and the circulation air passage 15 has a flow section for causing water that has passed through the filter 22 to flow down into the drain tank 32. It is provided. For example, by configuring the flow section to include the bottoms 42a, 17a of the filter duct 17 that are inclined downward as described above, the water that has passed through the filter 22 can be guided from the bottoms 42a, 17a into the drain tank 32. , it is possible to suppress water from remaining in the circulation air path 15. Further, by providing a drain pump 33 that discharges water in the drain tank 32, it becomes possible to drive the drain pump 33 and discharge the water in the drain tank 32 to the outside of the machine.

10 and 11 show second and third embodiments of the present invention. Below, points that are substantially different from the embodiments described above will be described.
In the peripheral wall 35 of the drum 10 of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 10, a group of dehydration holes 10b is provided in the opposing surface portion 35B. For convenience of explanation, the individual dehydration holes 10b in the opposing surface portion 35B will be referred to as "second dehydration holes 10b", and the individual dehydration holes 10a in the non-opposed surface portion 35A will be referred to as "first dehydration holes 10a", and both dehydration holes 10a will be referred to as "second dehydration holes 10b". , 10b.

That is, the facing surface portion 35B of the drum 10 is provided with a plurality of second dehydration holes 10b that are different from the first dehydration holes 10a. As shown in FIG. 10, the second dehydration holes 10b are all round holes having the same diameter Db and penetrate the peripheral wall 35, which is the opposing surface portion 35B. The diameter Db of the second dehydration hole 10b is set to a value smaller than a standard value, for example, when the diameter Da of the first dehydration hole 10a is a standard value (Db<Da). Further, the second dehydration holes 10b are arranged at predetermined intervals so as to cover substantially the entire area of the opposing surface portion 35B, and the arrangement pitch Pb thereof is set to be larger than the arrangement pitch Pa of the first dehydration holes 10a. (Pb>Pa). Therefore, it can be said that the second dehydration hole 10b group consisting of the plurality of second dehydration holes 10b has a smaller number per unit area than the first dehydration hole 10a group.

Therefore, in the drum 10 of the second embodiment, although the second dehydration hole 10b of the opposing surface portion 35B faces the exhaust port 12 of the water tank 7, it has a smaller flow into the circulation air path 15 than the first dehydration hole 10a. It can be said that the amount of water intrusion can be reduced. The second dehydration holes 10b may be formed to be smaller than the first dehydration holes 10a or to have a smaller number per unit area. The amount of water intrusion can be reduced.

The exhaust port 12' of the third embodiment shown in FIG. = L1), and has a circular shape. In this case, the exhaust duct 16' is a cylindrical duct with a circular cross section matching the exhaust port 12'.

In this way, even if the exhaust port 12' is formed into a circular or substantially circular shape, the overall size L2' (=L1) is set so that the opening area is as large as possible in correspondence with the facing surface portion 35B. By doing so, it is possible to achieve the same effects as the above-described embodiment, such as being able to reduce pressure loss.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, but can be implemented with appropriate changes, such as combining the embodiments or modifications described above, or omitting a part of the configuration. It is.
The dehydration hole in the facing surface portion 35B of the drum 10 is not limited to the second dehydration hole 10b shown in FIG. 10, but may be any dehydration hole that can suppress water from entering the exhaust port 12 compared to the first dehydration hole 10a. Often, only the diameter size may be different from the first dehydration hole 10a. In addition, when expanding the corresponding facing surface portion 35B in conjunction with expanding the exhaust port 12, for example, when shifting the tangent line 120 of the rear end of the exhaust port 12 to the right side (towards the back of the drum 10) in FIG. The exhaust port 12 may be enlarged in the front-rear direction to a position where the tangent line 120 touches or overlaps the dehydration hole 10b.

Although the opposing surface portion 35B is formed to have an inclined surface 37 as a whole, the shape may be changed, such as forming a part of the opposing surface portion 35B in an inclined stepped shape. Further, the downstream part for causing the water that has passed through the filter 22 to flow down into the drain tank 32 includes the downwardly inclined bottom parts 42a and 17a of the filter duct 17. For example, the bottom part of the filter duct 17 has a groove or a pipe It is also possible to provide a section (none of which is shown) and allow the water to flow down into the drain tank 32 using the groove section or pipe section as a flow section.

Although several embodiments of the invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and gist of the invention, as well as within the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents.

In the drawing, 1 is a washer/dryer (drum type washing machine), 7 is a water tank (outer tank), 10 is a drum, 10a is a first dehydration hole, 10b is a second dehydration hole, 12, 12' are exhaust ports, 13 is an air supply port, 15 is a circulation air path, 16, 16' is an exhaust duct, 16b is a bent part, 21 is a bellows part, 22 is a lint filter (filter), 23 is a fan device, 27 is an evaporator (dehumidifying means) , 32 drain tank, 33 is a drain pump, 35 is a peripheral wall, 35A is a non-opposed surface, 35B is an opposing surface, 37 is an inclined surface, 38 is a mountain fold, 39 is a valley fold, 40 is a surface, and 43a is a small hole (through hole). water part), is shown.

Claims (2)

an outer tank having an air supply port and an exhaust port;
a drum rotatably provided in the outer tank around a horizontal axis and having a group of dewatering holes in a peripheral wall;
a circulation air passage provided outside the outer tank so as to communicate between the air supply port and the exhaust port;
a fan device that circulates air in the drum through the circulation air path;
A dehumidifying means provided in the circulating air path,
In the peripheral wall of the drum, an opposing surface portion facing the exhaust port is set as a non-formation region of the dehydration hole group where the dehydration hole group is not formed, and the size of the exhaust port is expanded to match the non-formation region;
The opposing surface portion is the non-formed area that faces the exhaust port in the direction of a perpendicular line perpendicular to the central axis of the drum, and is located within the perpendicular line connecting the central axis and the edge of the exhaust port. A drum-type washing machine, wherein a perpendicular line connecting the ends of the exhaust port in the direction of the central axis is defined at a position where it intersects with the peripheral wall of the drum. an outer tank having an air supply port and an exhaust port;
a drum rotatably provided in the outer tank around a horizontal axis and having a group of dewatering holes in a peripheral wall;
a circulation air passage provided outside the outer tank so as to communicate between the air supply port and the exhaust port;
a fan device that circulates air in the drum through the circulation air path;
A dehumidifying means provided in the circulating air path,
In the peripheral wall of the drum, the dehydration hole group consists of a large number of first dehydration holes formed on a surface not facing the exhaust port, and the surface facing the exhaust port has a plurality of first dehydration holes formed on a surface not facing the exhaust port. A non-forming region of the first dehydration hole group that does not form a hole group, and at least one or more dehydration holes that are smaller than the first dehydration hole or smaller in number per unit area as dehydration holes different from the first dehydration hole. A second dehydration hole is formed;
The size of the exhaust port is expanded to correspond to a region where the first dehydration hole group is not formed,
The opposing surface portion is a region where the first dehydration hole group is not formed and faces the exhaust port in the direction of a perpendicular line perpendicular to the central axis of the drum, and the opposing surface portion is a region where the first dehydration hole group is not formed, and is located between the central axis and the edge of the exhaust port. The drum-type washing machine is configured such that a perpendicular line connecting the ends of the exhaust port in the direction of the central axis intersects with the peripheral wall of the drum.

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