JP3011523B2 - Steam iron - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a steam iron, and more particularly, to a steam iron having a water storage tank above an iron base, and having a vaporization chamber between the water storage tank and the iron base. The present invention relates to a steam iron that evaporates water supplied to an iron to generate steam and ejects the steam from a steam passage of an iron base.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a steam iron of this kind is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 42-15590 (48C 334).

In other words, the steam iron vaporizes water supplied from an iron base, a water storage tank provided above the iron base, and a water storage tank provided between the water storage tank and the iron base. A vaporization chamber for generating steam, a water passage for communicating water between the water storage tank and the vaporization chamber, and a water passage provided by operating an operation button from the outside, which is provided vertically above the water passage and is externally operated. An opening and closing rod for opening and closing the section. An opening / closing valve for opening and closing the water passage section is provided on the vaporization chamber side of the water passage section, and a heat responsive member that operates according to a predetermined temperature to open and close the opening / closing valve is provided.

In such a steam iron,
An opening / closing rod is provided on the water storage tank side, and an opening / closing valve and a heat responsive member are provided on the vaporization chamber side. Therefore, the structure around the water passage is complicated, and water remains between the opening / closing rod and the water passage, between the water passage and the opening / closing valve, or inside the water passage. There was a risk of corrosion.

Therefore, in order to solve such inconveniences, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 61-16795 (D 06 F 75/18) and Japanese Patent Publication No. 62-41758 (D 06 F 75/18) have been proposed. Steam iron was proposed.

[0006] The former steam iron is disclosed in
An opening / closing valve (opening / closing device) for opening and closing the water passage in addition to the iron base, the water storage tank, the vaporization chamber, and the water passage similar to the steam iron of JP-A-15590.
The on-off valve is connected to a thermally responsive member made of a bi-inverting bimetal provided on the iron base side, and the resistance of this thermally responsive member for upside-down operation is limited to only the on-off valve.

[0007] The latter steam iron has an iron base, a water storage tank, a vaporization chamber, and a water passage section similar to the above, and an opening / closing valve (opening / closing device) provided in the water passage section for opening and closing the water passage section. And a heat responsive member made of a bimetal provided on the iron base for operating the on-off valve, a spring provided to always urge the on-off valve in the closing direction and closing the on-off valve at a predetermined temperature or less, and vaporizing from the water storage tank. And an external operation unit for shutting off water supplied to the chamber.

[0008]

Although these two types of steam irons each have one on-off valve, the operation of the on-off valve is restricted by a thermally responsive member made of bimetal. For this reason, in any of the steam irons, if the on-off valve is closed by an external operation while the on-off valve is open, a pressing force enough to withstand the operating force of the thermally responsive member is required. You. In addition, due to such a pressing force, a change in stress of the thermally responsive member, deformation of the thermally responsive member, and the like may occur, and a problem may occur in operating dimensions or operating temperature. Therefore, it is difficult to increase the operating stroke of the on-off valve, and there is a problem that the on-off performance of the on-off valve is not reliable.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a steam iron capable of increasing the operation stroke of an on-off valve and ensuring the reliability of the on-off performance of the on-off valve. Is to provide.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an iron base, a water storage tank provided above the iron base, and water supplied from the water storage tank provided between the water storage tank and the iron base. A vaporization chamber that vaporizes to generate steam, a water passage through which water is communicated between the water storage tank and the vaporization chamber, an on-off valve provided in the water passage to openably close the water passage, and an external valve. And a transmission means provided between the operation button and the on-off valve for transmitting the movement of the operation button to the on-off valve, and constituting a part of the transmission means. A steam responsive member provided on the iron base and operating at a predetermined temperature to operate an open / close valve.

That is, in the steam iron according to the present invention, a transmission means is provided between the operation button and the on-off valve, and further comprises a part of the transmission means which operates at a predetermined temperature to operate the on-off valve. The gist is that the member is provided on an iron base.

[0012]

The transmitting means transmits the movement of the operation button to the on-off valve. The heat responsive member is substantially a part of the transmission means,
For example, it operates by detecting the temperature of the iron base. The heat responsive member operates when a predetermined temperature is reached to operate the on-off valve. Therefore, no load other than the opening / closing operation force of the opening / closing valve is applied to the heat responsive member, and the movement amount of the opening / closing valve can be increased with a small external operation stroke. Then, a configuration in which the flow rate of water is arbitrarily changed is also possible.

Here, as the transmission means, a plurality of members such as an interlocking rod, an operating pin, various springs and levers are combined or used alone. Further, as the heat responsive member, for example, a bowl-shaped or dish-shaped one made of a bimetal that is turned upside down is used.

[0014] It is more preferable that the steam iron of the present invention is provided with a water amount adjusting means for adjusting the amount of water supplied from the water storage tank to the vaporization chamber. Here, as the water amount adjusting means, for example, means for adjusting the amount of water to be increased or decreased by opening and closing the on-off valve stepwise is used.

In the steam iron of the present invention, the heat responsive member functions to actuate the water amount adjusting means as a part of the transmitting means and to close the on-off valve when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature. More preferred. At this time, the heat responsive member is provided so as to interlock with the water amount adjusting means.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to one embodiment shown in the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to this.

In FIG. 1, a steam iron S according to the present invention is provided with an iron base 1 at the bottom. The lower surface of the iron base 1 is an ironing surface. A heating heater 2 is embedded in the iron base 1. Also, above the iron base 1,
A water storage tank 17 for storing water for generating steam is provided. Between the water storage tank 17 and the iron base 1, there is provided a vaporization chamber 3 for vaporizing water supplied from the water storage tank 17 to generate steam.

The iron base 1 is provided with a steam passage 4 and a compartment 5 in front of and behind the vaporization chamber 3, respectively. A part of the vaporizing chamber 3, the vapor passage 4 and the compartment 5 are covered by a base lid 6. Reference numeral 7 denotes a steam cover, which has a steam hole 8. The steam lid 7 is fitted into a recess 9 provided on the lower surface of the iron base 1. Thus, a steam chamber 10 is formed below the steam passage 4. The steam passage 4 and the steam chamber 10 are connected by a through hole 11.

Reference numeral 12 denotes a heat insulating cover disposed above the iron base 1. The handle 1 is located above the heat insulating cover 12.
3 are provided. Behind the handle 13, there is provided a cord reel unit 14 for winding and storing the power cord. A grip 15 is provided above the handle 13. An electronic circuit board 16 for control is housed inside the grip 15.

At the front of the handle 13, there is provided a vertically movable lock button 18 constantly urged downward by a spring. The water storage tank 17 is disposed so as to be detachable by a lock button 18 in front of the handle 13. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 to 6, a drum-shaped valve seat 19 as a part of a water amount adjusting means is provided at the center of the bottom of the water storage tank 17 with a heat-resistant flexible packing 21 and a guide member. 22 and is fixed. The valve seat 19 has an opening 20 as a water passage that allows the water storage tank 17 to communicate with the vaporization chamber 3 and allows water to pass therethrough.

Reference numeral 23 denotes an opening / closing rod serving as an opening / closing valve, which moves up and down to open and close the opening 20 of the valve seat 19. A needle 24 is provided at the tip of the opening / closing rod 23 as a part of the water amount adjusting means, which is fitted into the opening 20 of the valve seat 19. The diameter of the needle 24 is larger at the proximal end and smaller at the distal end. Reference numeral 25 denotes a switching shaft as a part of the transmission member, which is constantly urged downward by a spring 26 as a part of the transmission member. The upper end of the switching shaft 25 is supported by a guide member 22 as a part of the transmission member.
The lower end of the switching shaft 25 is made water-tight by the packing 21, and penetrates the bottom surface of the water storage tank 17 to face the outside.

The opening / closing rod 23 has its upper end locked to a switching shaft 25, and is movable vertically by a switching shaft 25 and a spring 26. Below the valve seat 19, a heat-resistant connecting member 27 is provided as a part of the transmission member, penetrating the heat insulating cover 12. Communication member 2
7 has a water passage which connects the valve seat 19 and the vaporization chamber 3.

Below the switching shaft 25, a leaf spring 29 as a part of the transmission member inside the heat insulating cover 12 always operates.
A substantially L-shaped lever 28 is provided as a part of the transmission member, which is urged downward. That is, the lever 28
The rear end is pivotally supported by a leaf spring 29, and the front side is a heat insulating cover 1.
The upper surface 2 is adapted to pivot so as to be able to appear and disappear.

In the compartment 5 below the lever 28, a shallow bowl-shaped heat responsive member 30 made of a bimetal that is turned upside down and laid down on the floor of the compartment 5 has a central portion formed on a projecting boss 31. It is provided in a fitting engagement. The floor of the compartment 5 has a curved shape following the shape of the heat responsive member 30. The heat responsive member 30 is in overall contact with the floor of the compartment 5. The front portion of the heat responsive member 30 and the lever 28
It is connected by an operating pin 32 as a part of a transmission member that can move up and down through the base lid 6. The operation pin 32 presses and holds the heat responsive member 30 toward the iron base 1 by the downward urging force of the lever 28 and the leaf spring 29.

An interlocking rod 33 as a part of a transmission member is disposed on the front inside the handle 13. This interlocking rod 3
3 is configured to be vertically urged upward by a spring A34 as a part of the transmission member. A push button 35 as an operation button is provided above the interlocking rod 33.
, A pivot 36 as a part of the transmission member, and a locking guide 37 as a part of the transmission member.

That is, the upper end of the push button 35 projects outside from the grip 15. The rotator 36 is arranged below the push button 35 and moves up and down with the up and down movement of the push button 35, and turns when the push button 35 comes to a lower position (steam position) where steam is generated. I do.
The locking guide 37 guides the vertically moving and rotating operation of the rotating member 36. Each time the push button 35 is pressed down, the rotator 36 rotates, and the rotator 36 is moved to a lower position where steam is generated and an upper position where steam is not generated (dry position).
Lock alternately with. In other words, the mechanism of the portion including the push button 35, the rotator 36, and the locking guide 37 is the same as the mechanism of a so-called knock ballpoint pen.

A spring B38 as a part of a transmission member is interposed between the rotator 36 and the interlocking rod 33.
The rotator 36 and the push button 35 are constantly urged upward by the spring B38. 39 is interlocking rod 3
3 is a switching button as a part of the transmission member for switching the operation amount, and is urged upward by a spring C40 as a part of the transmission member. In the normal state, the switching button 39 is operated by the spring B34 by the force of the spring A34.
It has been pushed upward against the force of eight. The switching button 39 is pressed down against the force of the spring A34, and the interlocking rod 33 is pushed up by the force of the spring B38. The magnitude of the spring pressure of the spring A34, the spring B38, and the spring C40 is the same as that of the spring C4.
0> spring B38> spring A34.

The operation is as follows. That is, when the temperature of the iron base 1 rises to reach the temperature at which steam can be generated, the heat responsive member 30 is turned over from the state of FIG.
As shown in FIG. Here, the push button 35 is pressed down to hold the rotator 36 at the lower position. Then, the interlocking rod 33 is pushed down and presses the rear part of the thermally responsive member 30 downward. Then, the heat responsive member 30
Operates the seesaw with the central portion as a fulcrum,
To open the opening 20 of the valve seat 19 slightly by rotating the front portion of the lever 28 upward.

At this time, the needle 24 of the opening / closing lever 23 has moved from the position shown in FIG. 4 to the position shown in FIG. A gap is formed between the small-diameter tip of the needle 24 and the opening 20 of the valve seat 19. Therefore, it can be adjusted so that the flow rate of water and thus the steam generation rate is reduced.

Next, when the switching button 39 is depressed, the interlocking rod 33 is further moved downward by the spring B38 even if the push button 35 and the rotator 36 are at the same positions as before. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, the open / close lever 23 is further moved upward. At this time, the needle 24 of the opening / closing rod 23
Has moved away from the opening 20 of the valve seat 19 to the position shown in FIG. Therefore, it can be adjusted so that the flow rate of water and thus the steam generation rate are increased.

In this state, when the temperature of the iron base 1 decreases, the temperature is detected by the heat responsive member 30.
Then, the amount of upward bending of the thermally responsive member 30 decreases, and the thermally responsive member 30 gradually starts to deform downward. Therefore, the open / close lever 2
3 also moves down to the position shown in FIG. And
The amount of water flow, and thus the amount of steam generated, is reduced. When the temperature of the iron base 1 further decreases, the heat responsive member 30 returns to the state shown in FIG. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the opening 20 of the valve seat 19 is closed, and the flow of water is stopped.

The heat responsive member 30 is always in contact with the iron base 1 at its central portion during the above operation. Therefore, it is also possible to sensitively detect the temperature of the iron base 1 and prevent a response delay.

When the push button 35 is depressed again,
As shown in FIG. 1, the rotator 36 is held at the upper position, and accordingly, the interlocking rod 33 is held at the uppermost position. When the interlocking rod 33 is held at the uppermost position, only the rear portion of the heat responsive member 30 is displaced upward when the heat responsive member 30 is turned upside down, and the operation pin 32 on the front side thereof is moved.
Is set so that it hardly displaces. Therefore, in this state, the lever 28 is maintained at the position shown in FIG. 1 regardless of the upward movement of the thermally responsive member 30, so that the state in which the opening 20 of the valve seat 19 is closed and the flow of water is stopped continues. I do.

In the steam iron S, the heat responsive member 30 substantially functions as a part of the transmission means.
Therefore, even if the external operation amount by the push button 35 is reduced, the opening / closing operation amount of the opening / closing lever 23 can be sufficiently ensured. Then, the accuracy of the opening / closing operation can be improved. Further, in the steam iron S, as described above, the amount of flow of water and thus the amount of generated steam can be varied without requiring any special device.

In the steam iron S, when the temperature of the heat responsive member 30 becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, the heat responsive member 30 operates to open and close the open / close lever 2.
Open 3. Therefore, the opening / closing rod 23 is connected to the heat responsive member 30.
No load other than the opening / closing operation force is applied, and the movement amount of the opening / closing rod 23 can be increased with a small external operation stroke. In addition, iron base 1
Even when the heating is stopped, the amount of upward bending of the thermally responsive member 30 is reduced, and the thermally responsive member 30 gradually starts to deform downward.
Then, the opening / closing rod 23 also moves downward, and after reducing the amount of flow of water and thus the amount of generated steam, the opening 20 of the valve seat 19 is closed and the flow of water stops. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a sharp drop in temperature, and particularly when used as a cordless iron, to secure a certain use time and prevent residual water in the vaporization chamber 3.

[0036]

Since the steam iron according to the present invention is constructed as described above, the operating stroke of the on-off valve can be increased, and the reliability of the on-off performance of the on-off valve can be ensured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a steam iron according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of the entire configuration showing a state where a water passage opening is closed.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of a main part configuration showing a state in which an opening of the steam iron is partially opened.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a main part configuration of the steam iron in a state in which all openings are opened.

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged configuration explanatory view showing a state in which an opening of the steam iron is closed.

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged configuration explanatory view showing a state in which an opening of the steam iron is partially opened.

FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged configuration explanatory view showing a state in which all openings of the steam iron are opened.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Iron base 3 Vaporization room 17 Water storage tank 19 Valve seat (Water amount adjustment means) 20 Opening (Water passage part) 21 Packing 23 Opening / closing rod (Open / close valve) 24 Needle (Water amount adjustment means) 28 Lever (Transmission member) 29 Leaf spring ( (Transmission member) 30 Thermal response member 32 Operating pin (Transmission member) 33 Interlocking rod (Transmission member) 34 Spring A (Transmission member) 35 Push button (Operation button) 36 Rotator (Transmission member) 37 Locking guide (Transmission member) ) 38 Spring B (transmission member) 39 Switching button (transmission member) 40 Spring C (transmission member)

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) D06F 75/18 D06F 75/14

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An iron base, a water storage tank provided above the iron base, and vaporization for generating steam by vaporizing water supplied from the water storage tank provided between the water storage tank and the iron base. Chamber, a water passage through which water is communicated with the water storage tank and the vaporization chamber, an opening / closing valve provided in the water passage to openably close the water passage, and an operation button facing the outside. A transmission means provided between the operation button and the on-off valve for transmitting the movement of the operation button to the on-off valve; and a part of the transmission means
A steam-operated member provided on the iron base and operating at a predetermined temperature to operate an on-off valve. 2. The steam iron according to claim 1, further comprising a water amount adjusting means for adjusting an amount of water supplied from the water storage tank to the vaporization chamber. 3. The heat responsive member, in conjunction with the transmitting means, activates the water amount adjusting means, and operates the on-off valve to shut off water supplied from the water storage tank to the vaporizing chamber when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature. 2. Steam iron according to 2.