JP3059881B2 - Clothes dryer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clothes dryer for drying clothes housed in a rotating drum.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a clothes dryer that supplies heated air to a rotating drum containing clothes and rotates the rotating drum to dry the clothes has been used. Such a clothes dryer is generally provided with a fan, and the air in the clothes dryer is circulated through a circulation duct connected to a rotating drum by rotation of the fan. A heating heater is attached near the entrance of the rotating drum, and the air sent into the circulation duct is heated by the heating heater to generate heated air, and the generated heated air is supplied to the rotating drum. You. In the rotating drum, heat exchange is performed between the supplied heated air and the clothing, and thereby the moisture permeating the clothing is evaporated. The air containing moisture is exhausted from the rotating drum to the circulation duct, and the moisture contained therein is condensed by predetermined cooling means. The dehumidified air is sent to the outlet side of the circulation duct again by the rotation of the fan. The condensed water is drained out of the clothes dryer through a predetermined drain.

[0003] In the above-mentioned clothes dryer, the clothes are dried by heating air, so that the clothes immediately after the drying are hot. Therefore, in the clothes dryer, a cold air operation (cool down) is often performed after finishing the drying in order to easily take out the high-temperature clothes. A clothes dryer that cools down after drying is completed is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-10099.
No. 9 discloses this. In the clothes dryer disclosed in this publication, when the drying is completed, the power supply to the heater is stopped, and the operation of the fan is continued.
As a result, unheated air is supplied into the rotary drum, and the high-temperature clothes in the rotary drum are cooled by the air.

[0004] The cool-down is automatically stopped when the temperature of the clothes in the rotating drum drops to 40 ° C or lower, or when 10 minutes have passed since the start of the cool-down. The temperature of the clothes is detected by a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of air exhausted from the rotating drum attached near the outlet of the rotating drum. The temperature of the air exhausted from the rotating drum can be regarded as substantially the same as the temperature of the clothing in the rotating drum because heat is exchanged between the air and the clothing in the rotating drum. Therefore, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor becomes the temperature of the clothes in the rotating drum.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned clothes dryer, for example, when the ambient temperature (usually, room temperature) where the clothes dryer is installed is high, for example, when driving in summer, or in a tightly closed place. When the clothes dryer is installed in the washing machine and the amount of the clothes to be dried is large, the cool down ends even though the temperature of the clothes in the rotating drum is not lower than 40 ° C. There is a risk. That is, as described above, the cool-down is stopped when the temperature of the clothes in the rotating drum falls to 40 ° C. or lower, or when 10 minutes have elapsed since the start of the cool-down. In this case, it is possible that 10 minutes elapse before the temperature drops to 40 ° C. or lower, and the cool down ends. In such a case, the clothes in the rotating drum remain hot and cannot be taken out immediately.

To cope with this, it is conceivable to set the cool-down stop time longer than 10 minutes, for example, about 20 minutes. According to this, even if the ambient temperature is high,
Since the clothes in the rotary drum exchange heat with air for a long time, the clothes can be cooled sufficiently. However, when the cool-down time is long, a new problem occurs in that the clothes in the rotary drum are more likely to be damaged by the mechanical force of the rotary drum than when the cool-down time is short. In particular, in winter when the ambient temperature is low, the damage increases even though it is sufficiently cooled in about 10 minutes.
Not very good.

Also, the cool down time is left as it is,
It is also conceivable to cool down with the fan rotating at high speed. According to this, even when the ambient temperature is high, the air is supplied into the rotary drum with a large air volume, so that the clothing can be sufficiently cooled even in a short time. However, when the fan is rotated at a high speed, a new problem occurs in that noise accompanying the rotation is increased. In particular, in a winter where the ambient temperature is low, noise is increased even though cooling is sufficiently performed at a low rotation speed.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned technical problem, to surely cool the clothes in the rotating drum, and to minimize damage and noise caused by mechanical force. It is to provide a dryer.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a clothes dryer, comprising: a rotating drum for accommodating clothes; a heating means for generating heated air; Blowing means for supplying the heated air to the inside of the rotating drum, exhausting the heated air supplied to the rotating drum to the outside of the rotating drum, outlet temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the air exhausted from the rotating drum, Driving means for rotating the rotary drum and driving the blowing means, end determining means for determining whether or not the drying process has been completed; and when the end determining device determines that the drying process has been completed, the heating is performed. And stopping the drive until the outlet temperature detected by the outlet temperature detecting means becomes equal to or lower than the first reference temperature or for a predetermined time. A clothes dryer including cool-down control means for continuing the driving of the step, wherein the ambient temperature detecting means for detecting the ambient temperature and the ambient temperature detecting means when the end determining means determines that the drying process has been completed. Temperature determination means for determining whether or not the ambient temperature detected by the means is equal to or higher than a predetermined second reference temperature, wherein the cool-down control means is provided by the ambient temperature detection means by the temperature determination means. When it is determined that the detected ambient temperature is equal to or higher than the second reference temperature, the driving means is driven at a predetermined high output.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the cool-down control means determines that the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than the second reference temperature. Then, the predetermined time for continuing the driving of the driving means is extended. The end determining means may determine whether or not the drying process has ended based on, for example, whether or not the temperature detected by the outlet temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. Good.

[0011]

In the above construction, when it is determined by the end determining means that the drying process has been completed, the power supply to the heating means is stopped, and the driving means for rotating the rotating drum and driving the air blowing means is driven. Is continued until the outlet temperature of the rotating drum becomes equal to or lower than the first reference temperature or for a predetermined time.

In this case, if the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than the second reference temperature, the driving means is driven at a predetermined high output. When the driving means is driven at a high output, unheated air is supplied to the rotating drum with a large air volume. for that reason,
Even when the ambient temperature is high, the clothes in the rotating drum are reliably cooled.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, if the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than the second reference temperature, the predetermined time for continuing the driving of the driving means is extended. When the driving of the driving means is extended, heat exchange is performed between the clothing in the rotating drum and the unheated air for a long time. Therefore, even if the ambient temperature is high, the clothes in the rotating drum are reliably cooled.

As described above, according to the configuration of the first or second aspect, the cooling down is performed with a large air volume or for a long time only when the ambient temperature is high. The clothing can be reliably cooled, and damage and noise caused by mechanical force can be minimized as compared with a case where cooling is always performed with a large air volume or for a long time.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a clothes dryer according to one embodiment of the present invention. Dryer body 1
A drying chamber 2 is formed inside the drying chamber 2, and a rotating drum 3 for storing clothes is provided in the drying chamber 2. A door 4 is attached to the center of the front surface of the dryer body 1 so as to be openable and closable, and clothes are put into the rotating drum 3 from the door 4.

The rotating drum 3 is rotatably supported by the dryer main body 1 via felt or the like by a drum supporting plate 5 made of an annular sheet metal attached so as to surround the door 4 on the front side. The shaft 6 is rotatably supported by the dryer body 1. In addition, an inlet 7 for introducing heated air, which will be described later, is formed in a lower part of the front surface. Further, an air outlet 8 is formed near the center of the rear surface, and the air outlet 8 is covered with a lint filter 9. Reference numeral 10 denotes a sealing member that seals between the drying chamber 2 and a fan chamber described later so that air exhausted from the air exhaust port 8 does not enter the drying chamber 2.

Behind the rotating drum 3, a fan chamber 12 containing a heat exchange type double-sided fan 11 fixed to the shaft 6 is defined by a fan casing 13. As will be described in detail later, the double-sided fan 11 circulates air in the dryer main body 1 and functions as a blower for removing moisture from the circulated air. The fan casing 13 is provided with a partition plate 14 made of synthetic resin so as to surround the double-sided fan 11. The two-sided fan 11 is accommodated in a circular opening at the center of the partition plate 14, whereby the internal space of the fan chamber 12 is divided into a drying air passage 12a and a cooling air passage 12b.

At the periphery of the double-sided fan 11, a drying air passage 12 is provided.
a and a concentric rotating groove group 15 that opens toward the cooling air passage 12b. The rotating groove group 15 is loosely fitted in a non-contact state with a fixed groove group 16 formed integrally with the partition plate 14. That is, the labyrinth connection is formed by the rotating groove group 15 and the fixed groove group 16. Therefore, air cannot flow between the drying air passage 12a and the cooling air passage 12b.

A circulation duct 17 is provided below the dryer body 1.
Is provided. This circulation duct 17 is used for drying air path 1
2a and the inlet 7 are connected, and a heater 18 functioning as a heating means is disposed near the inlet 7. A drain port 19 for draining condensed water, which will be described later, to the outside of the dryer main body 1 is formed at the lowest part of the circulation duct 17.

At the bottom of the main body 1 of the dryer, a motor 20 functioning as a driving means is provided. The motor 20
A rotating force is applied to a belt 21 wound around the outer peripheral surface of the rotating drum 2 via a pulley 22, while a rotating force is applied to a shaft 6 to which the double-sided fan 11 is fixed via a pulley 23 and a belt 24. As a result, the rotating drum 3 and the double-sided fan 11 are rotated. A rotation sensor 25 for detecting the number of rotations of the motor 20 is attached to the pulley 23. In addition, the idler pulley 26 applies tension to the belt 21 when the rotating drum 3 rotates,
This is for preventing the belt 21 from slipping.

When the double-sided fan 11 rotates, air is sent from the drying air passage 12a to the circulation duct 17. The air sent to the circulation duct 17 is heated by the heater 18 to become heated air, and is introduced into the rotary drum 3 from the inlet 7. In the rotating drum 3, heat exchange is performed between the introduced heated air and the clothes. As a result, the moisture contained in the clothes is evaporated. The air containing moisture is sent again to the drying air passage 12a by the rotation of the double-sided fan 11. That is, the rotation of the double-sided fan 11 causes the air to be
a, Circulate through the circulation duct 17 and the rotating drum 3.

When the double-sided fan 11 rotates, outside air is taken into the cooling air passage 12b from an outside air inlet 27 formed in the center of the rear surface of the dryer body 1. At this time, the double-sided fan 11 is cooled by the outside air. The taken outside air is exhausted from an outside air exhaust port 28 formed below the dryer main body 1. The air in the drying air passage 12a is a double-sided fan 1
When it touches 1, it is cooled. That is, since the two-sided fan 11 is cooled by the outside air, the air in the drying air passage 12a is cooled by contacting the two-sided fan 11. Therefore, moisture in the air exhausted from the rotating drum 3 is condensed. Dehumidified air is supplied to the double-sided fan 11
Is sent to the circulation duct 17 again by the rotation of. The condensed water flows down the drying air passage 12a and is drained from the drain port 19.

In the vicinity of the air exhaust port 8 of the rotating drum 3,
An outlet temperature sensor 29H for detecting the temperature of exhaust gas from the rotating drum 3 is provided. An ambient temperature sensor 29L is provided at the bottom of the dryer main body 1. This ambient temperature sensor 29L is for detecting the ambient temperature of the clothes dryer. The outlet temperature sensor 29H and the ambient temperature sensor 29L are configured by a heat-sensitive element such as a thermistor. These outlet temperature sensors 29H
Based on each output of the ambient temperature sensor 29L, the drying state of the clothes in the rotating drum 2 and the like are determined. In this embodiment, the outlet temperature sensor 29H corresponds to the outlet temperature detecting means, and the ambient temperature sensor 29L corresponds to the ambient temperature detecting means.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the clothes dryer. The clothes dryer is provided with a microcomputer 40 for controlling the operation of each part of the clothes dryer. This microcomputer 4
0 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and a timer, all of which are not shown, and performs predetermined control according to a program stored in the ROM. In this embodiment, the microcomputer 40 functions as an end determination unit, a cool-down control unit, and a temperature determination unit.

The microcomputer 40 detects a rotation speed detection circuit 41 to which the rotation sensor 25 is connected, an input key circuit 42 to which input keys such as a start key and a drying course selection key are connected, and the opening and closing of the door 4. A door switch 43, an LED lighting circuit 44 to which an LED indicator for displaying the progress of the drying process is connected, and a reset circuit 4 to which a stop key for stopping drying operation such as temporary stop is connected.
5, and a clock oscillation circuit 46 for generating a clock.

The microcomputer 40 is connected with a power supply circuit 47 connected to a commercial power supply, a power supply voltage determination circuit 48 for determining the voltage of the power supply circuit 47, and a buzzer for notifying the end of the drying operation and the like. Buzzer circuit 49,
And a commercial power supply zero-cross signal detection circuit 50 for detecting the zero cross of the commercial power supply. Further, the microcomputer 40 has an outlet temperature sensor 29H,
Heater 1 including ambient temperature sensor 29L, motor 17, first heater 18a, and second heater 18b
8, and a load drive circuit 5 for driving an auto power off (APO) 51 for automatically ending the drying operation
2 are connected. When drying at a relatively low temperature, only one of the first heater 18a and the second heater 18b is energized, and when drying at a relatively high temperature, both are energized.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the cool-down operation after the drying operation in the clothes dryer is completed. The criteria for determining the end of the drying operation depend on the drying course selected by the user. That is, when the user selects a course with a limited time, such as a 30-minute course or a 60-minute course, the microcomputer 4 informs the microcomputer 4 that the time has elapsed.
The drying operation ends when 0 is detected. If the user selects an ironing course or the like, the drying operation ends when the microcomputer 40 determines that the dry state of the clothes stored in the rotating drum 3 matches the dry state of the course. . The determination as to whether the dry state of the clothes matches the dry state of the course is made based on the outlet temperature detected by the outlet temperature sensor 29H and the ambient temperature sensor 29.
This is performed depending on whether or not the temperature difference from the ambient temperature detected at L has reached a preset temperature difference.

The cool down after the drying operation is completed is as follows.
It is mainly performed for the purpose of cooling the clothing housed in the rotating drum 3. That is, since the clothes housed in the rotating drum 3 at the end of the drying operation are generally hot, the cool down is performed so that the user can easily take out the clothes. When it is determined that the drying operation has been completed (step S1), the power supply to the heater 18 is stopped, and the drive to the motor 20 is continued (step S2). At this time, the rotation speed of the motor 20 is the same as that during the drying operation, for example, 1200 (rpm). As a result, unheated air is introduced into the rotating drum 3 by the rotation of the double-sided fan 11, and the cool-down is started.

When the cool down is started, the time t ₁ during which the drying operation is performed and the outlet temperature T of the rotating drum 3 are set.
1 is supplied from the timer and the outlet temperature sensor 29H to the microcomputer 40 (step S
3). In the microcomputer 40, based on the given drying operation time t ₁ and the outlet temperature T1, the above R
By cool-down operation time table stored in OM is referenced, the operating time t ₂ to be subjected to cool-down is obtained (step S4). The cool-down operation time table drying operation time t ₁ and outlet temperature T1
And the corresponding relationship. Table 1 below shows an example of the cool-down operation time table.

[0030]

[Table 1]

In Table 1, the drying operation time t ₁ is x1
If ≦ t ₁ <x2, it is regarded as x1, and the outlet temperature T1
Is regarded as y1 when y1 ≦ T1 <y2. In the microcomputer 40, the cool-down operation time t ₂
Is acquired, the ambient temperature T2 becomes the ambient temperature sensor 29L.
(Step S5). Then, it is determined whether or not the read ambient temperature T2 is higher than a threshold temperature T _th1 (for example, T _th1 = 20 ° C.) which is a preset second reference temperature (step S6).

As a result, the ambient temperature T2 becomes the threshold temperature T
_If it is determined that it is smaller than _th1 , the cool-down in the low-temperature mode is performed. The cool-down in the low-temperature mode means that the rotation speed of the motor 20 is kept as it is and the above-described step S4
Is that of a normal cooldown performed in acquired cool-down operation time t ₂ in. Cooldown cold mode, the threshold temperature T _th2 outlet temperature T1 of the rotary drum 3 is a first reference temperature set in advance (for example, T _th2
= 40 ° C.) (step S7) or whether the cool-down time t ₂ has elapsed (step S7).
When the microcomputer 40 detects 8), the process is terminated.

On the other hand, as a result of the determination in step S6,
If it is determined that the ambient temperature T2 is higher than the threshold temperature _Tth1 , the high-temperature mode cool-down is performed. That is, in the microcomputer 40, the load drive circuit 52 is controlled so that the rotation speed of the motor 20 becomes maximum (for example, 1400 (rpm)) (step S9). As a result, the rotation of the double-sided fan 11 is maximized,
A large amount of air is introduced into the
Is rotated at a high speed and air frequently comes into contact with clothing. Therefore, clothing can be rapidly cooled.
In the microcomputer 40, the time t ₂ ′ at which the cool down should be extended is obtained by referring to the extended time table stored in the ROM (step S10). The extended time table is composed of a correspondence relationship between the drying operation time t ₁ and the ambient temperature T2. Table 2 below shows an example of the extended time table.

[0034]

[Table 2]

In Table 2, the drying operation time t ₁ is x1
If ≦ t ₁ <x2, it is regarded as x1 and the ambient temperature T2
Is regarded as y1 when y1 ≦ T1 <y2. Then, cool down correction time t ₃ is calculated extra time is acquired t ₂ 'is added to the cool-down operation time t ₂ obtained in In step S4 (step S11), and the correction time t ₃ when is the determined Cool down in the high temperature mode is continued as a reference. As a result, heat exchange between the clothes and the air is performed in the rotary drum 3 for a long time. Therefore, clothing can be rapidly cooled.

The cool down in the high temperature mode is performed by rotating the drum.
3 is a predetermined threshold temperature T_th2
(Step S12)
Down correction time t_ThreeHas elapsed (step S13)
Is terminated when the microcomputer 40 detects
You. As described above, according to the clothes dryer of the present embodiment,
Temperature T2 is threshold temperature T _th1Only when it is higher than
Cooling down with a large air volume for a long time
You. Therefore, a large amount of air is supplied into the rotating drum 3.
As well as a long heat exchange between clothing and its air
Therefore, the clothing can be reliably cooled. I
If the ambient temperature is high and the airflow is large,
Cool down is performed over a long time, so large air volume
Or for a long cool down
In comparison, damage or noise to clothing due to the mechanical force of the rotating drum 3
Sound can be minimized.

The embodiment of the present invention is as described above.
The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. For example, in the above embodiment, the moisture in the high humidity air containing the moisture contained in the clothes is condensed, and the dehumidified air is reheated by the heater 18 and returned to the rotating drum 3. I explained about the dehumidification type clothes dryer,
The present invention is applicable to other than this type of dryer.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, clothing has been described as an example of an object to be dried. However, the present invention can be applied to, for example, blankets, sheets, and other objects to be dried other than clothing. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when the ambient temperature T2 is higher than the threshold temperature _Tth1 , the cool-down is performed with a large air flow for a long time.
The present invention is also applicable to, for example, a case where a cool-down is performed with a large air volume without extending the time, or a case where the cool-down is performed with an extended time without increasing the air volume.

Various other design changes can be made within the scope described in the claims.

[0040]

As described above, according to the clothes dryer of the first or second aspect, only when the ambient temperature is high, the cool down is performed with a large air volume or for a long time. The clothing in the drum can be reliably cooled, and damage and noise due to mechanical force can be minimized as compared with a case where cooling down is always performed with a large air volume or for a long time.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a clothes dryer according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the clothes dryer.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a cool-down operation in the clothes dryer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Dryer main body 3 Rotary drum 11 Double-sided fan 17 Circulation duct 18 Heater 20 Motor 29H Outlet temperature sensor 29L Ambient temperature sensor

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Kazura Kawamura 2-5-5 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor ▲ Hiro ▼ Tatsuya Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka 2-5-5 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yoshiaki Aoki 2-5-5 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Tamotsu Kawamura Keihanhondori, Moriguchi, Osaka 2-5-5 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Minoru Kishi 2-5-5 Keihan Hondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-5-237293 (JP, A) JP-A-5-208097 (JP, A) JP-A-4-187197 (JP, A) JP-A-6-7598 (JP, A) JP-A-58-58491 (JP, U) (58) Survey Field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) D06F 58/28 F26B 2 5/00

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] A rotating drum for accommodating clothes; a heating means for generating heated air; heating air generated by the heating means being supplied into the rotating drum, and heating supplied to the rotating drum. Air blowing means for discharging air out of the rotating drum, outlet temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of air exhausted from the rotating drum, driving means for rotating the rotating drum and driving the blowing means, and the drying process is completed. End judging means for judging whether the drying process has been completed, and when the end judging means judges that the drying process has been completed, the power supply to the heating means is stopped and the outlet temperature detected by the outlet temperature detecting means. A clothes dryer including a cool-down control means for continuing the driving of the driving means until the temperature becomes equal to or lower than a first reference temperature or for a predetermined time. An ambient temperature detecting means for detecting an ambient temperature; and when the end determining means determines that the drying process has been completed, the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than a predetermined second reference temperature. A temperature discriminating means for discriminating whether or not the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means by the temperature discriminating means is the second temperature.
If it is determined that the temperature is equal to or higher than the reference temperature, the clothes drier is driven with a predetermined high output. 2. The cooling down control means continues to drive the driving means when the temperature discriminating means determines that the ambient temperature detected by the ambient temperature detecting means is equal to or higher than the second reference temperature. The clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined time to be performed is extended.