JP3175174B2 - Automatic washing machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic washing machine used in ordinary households.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, this type of automatic washing machine has a structure as shown in FIG. That is, the outer tub 1 in which the dewatering tub also serving as the washing tub is fixed is supported by the washing machine main body 3 via the suspension 2 in a vibration-proof manner. The suspension 2 is attached to the suspension rod 4, the cylindrical spring retainer 5, the helical spring 6, the flexible spring supporting disk 7, and the spring supporting disk 7, and is reduced in diameter when the temperature becomes higher than the transformation temperature. Shape memory alloy ring 8 for reducing the outer circumference of the spring supporting disk 7 so that the friction with the cylindrical spring retainer 5 is reduced.
The spring support disk 7 is slidably fitted on the inner periphery of the lower end of the cylindrical spring retainer 5. The outer tank 1 is placed on the spring retainer 5. With the above configuration,
Water supply, washing, drainage, and centrifugal dehydration were performed automatically.

[0003]

Generally, in an automatic washing machine, when a spin-drying tub is rotated to perform centrifugal spin-drying, large vibrations are generated due to an imbalance caused by an offset of clothes. In particular, the vibration amplitude becomes maximum at the time of starting and at the time of passing the resonance point. In order to suppress the vibration of this resonance, the above-mentioned spring retainer 5 and the spring supporting disk 7 are slid frictionally to attenuate the vibration. The vibration at the time of starting includes a mode in which the outer tub 1 swings largely horizontally and a mode in which the outer tub 1 vertically moves up and down. Does not demonstrate. Therefore, at the start of dehydration, the outer tub 1 swings largely due to imbalance and the washing machine body 3
And the washing machine body 3 vibrates greatly or cannot be started.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an automatic washing machine capable of suppressing the whirling of the outer tub and starting up smoothly.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a washing machine which is located outside a dehydration tub that also serves as a washing tub and receives water during dehydration via a suspension. The suspension is elastically supported from the main body and an air spring is provided in contact with the side wall of the outer tub, the suspension includes a suspension rod, and a spring support plate attached to a lower end of the suspension rod.
The spring support plate includes a cylindrical spring retainer that is inserted into the suspension bar and covers the spring support plate, and a compression spring interposed between the spring support plate and the spring retainer. And the inside of the air spring communicates with the automatic washing machine.

[0006]

The present invention having the above structure operates as follows. When the dehydration is started, the outer tub swings due to imbalance, and the spring support plate on the side where the outer tub is inclined slides upward in the spring retainer. At this time, the flow of air generated above the spring support plate is guided to an air spring to expand the air spring, thereby suppressing the runout of the outer tank.

[0007]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 to 3, a speed reducer 14 is fixed to a lower portion of an outer tub 13 for receiving water during dehydration, and the speed reducer 14 is formed by a motor 15 and a belt 10 fixed to a lower portion of the outer tub 13. Are linked. The drive shaft of the speed reducer 14 has a double structure, and a dehydration tub 16 also serving as a washing tub is fixed to the outer shaft 11. This dewatering tank 1
The outer tub 13 is located outside of the outer tub 6. Further, a stirring blade 17 located inside the dewatering tank 16 is fixed to the shaft 12 inside the drive shaft. The outer tub 13 is suspended from a washing machine main body 19 via a plurality of suspensions 18 for vibration isolation, and is elastically supported.

As shown in FIG. 1, each suspension 18 has a suspension rod 20, a spring support plate 21 attached to the lower end of the suspension rod 20, and a cylinder which is inserted through the suspension rod 20 and covers the spring support plate 21. And a compression spring 23 interposed between the spring support plate 21 and the spring retainer 22. Each of the hanging rods 20 has an air spring 24 at the upper part thereof, which abuts against the side wall of the outer tub 13, and an inner part 24 of the air spring 24 from the upper part of the spring support plate 21.
A pipe 25 for flowing air to a is provided. That is, the space between the spring support plate 21 and the spring retainer 22 and the inside of the air spring 24 communicate with each other via the air intake port 25 a and the conduit 25.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. Dehydration tank 1
During the centrifugal dehydration process in which 6 rotates, if an imbalance occurs due to a bias of clothes or the like, the outer tub 13 and the dehydration tub 16 vibrate violently. Especially at the time of startup, the outer tank 1
3 swings greatly. The anti-vibration mechanism of the present embodiment includes a spring of the suspension 18 on the side where the outer tub 13 is inclined when the outer tub 13 is about to swing so that the outer tub 13 and the like do not contact the washing machine main body 19 at the peak time. Utilizing that the support plate 21 slides upward in the spring retainer 22 and compresses the air above the spring support plate 21, the air is removed using the pipe 25 as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1. The air spring 24 is guided to the inside 24 a of the spring 24 and expanded by the air pressure to suppress the inclination of the outer tub 13. .

As described above, according to the automatic washing machine of this embodiment, the spring presser 22 generated by the whirling of the outer tub 13 is provided.
The flow of the air inside is guided to the air spring 24, and the air spring 24 is expanded to operate to suppress the whirling of the outer tub 13, so that the whirling can be reduced and the outer tank 13 can be started smoothly. The air spring 24 is provided on the suspension rod 20 and the conduit 25 is provided in the suspension rod 20 to provide a compact configuration. However, the configuration is not particularly limited to this configuration.

[0011]

As is apparent from the above embodiment, the automatic washing machine of the present invention, when unbalanced, sends air into the inside of the air spring to expand the air spring and bring it into contact with the outer tub. Since the tilting is suppressed, the whirling vibration at the time of starting the dehydration is reduced, and the starting can be performed smoothly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an automatic washing machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the suspension.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a conventional automatic washing machine.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the suspension.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 Outer tub 16 Dehydration tub 18 Suspension 19 Washing machine main body 20 Hanging rod 21 Spring support plate 22 Spring retainer 23 Compression spring 24 Air spring 25 Pipe

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. An outer tub, which is located outside a dehydration tub also serving as a washing tub and receives water during dehydration, is elastically supported by a washing machine main body via a suspension and is in contact with a side wall of the outer tub to form air. A spring is provided, the suspension includes a suspension rod, a spring support plate attached to a lower end of the suspension rod,
The spring support plate includes a cylindrical spring retainer that is inserted into the suspension bar and covers the spring support plate, and a compression spring interposed between the spring support plate and the spring retainer. Automatic washing machine which communicates the space of the air spring with the inside of the air spring. 2. The automatic washing machine according to claim 1, wherein an air spring is provided on the hanging bar and an air conduit is provided in the hanging bar.