JP5511752B2 - Clothes dryer - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a clothes dryer.

  Conventionally, while rotating and rotating a rotary drum containing clothes by a drum motor, air is sucked from outside the main body case with a supply / exhaust fan, and the sucked air is heated with a heating source such as a gas burner or an electric heater, 2. Description of the Related Art A clothes dryer that dries clothes by supplying heated air into a rotating drum is known.

  When performing the drying operation with the clothes dryer, it is desirable to prevent the clothes from being entangled and biased so that the heated air can uniformly strike the clothes in order to dry the clothes uniformly in the rotating drum. . Therefore, the rotating drum is provided with a plurality of lifters that protrude in the radial direction from the inner peripheral surface and extend in the width direction. When the clothes are rotated, the clothes are lifted to some extent by the lifters and dropped by the weight of the clothes. I try to let them.

  In addition, thin and large clothing such as sheets tend to be agglomerated in the rotating drum, so that they roll over the lifter and are difficult to lift by the lifter, so the rotational speed of the rotating drum is reduced during the drying operation. It has been proposed to pause or reduce (for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-233697

  By the way, in this type of clothes dryer, a large amount of heated air is passed through the rotating drum in order to dry the clothes in a short time. However, the airflow of nylon apron or thick mats is improved. When inferior clothes are dried, they may stick to the rotary drum or the outlet provided in the door. When the clothing sticks to the discharge port, the pressure from the discharge port to the air supply / exhaust fan decreases, and the clothing is strongly sucked into the discharge port. Even if the control is performed, the clothes are hardly peeled off from the discharge port. For this reason, the air permeability of the heated air passing through the rotating drum is abruptly reduced, and the amount of air sucked into the main body case is accordingly reduced. As a result, there is a problem that the temperature of the air near the heating source rises rapidly, the temperature of the air supplied into the rotating drum becomes high in a short time, and the clothes are damaged.

  In this case, the temperature in the rotating drum is measured by a temperature sensor such as a clothing temperature sensor, and when the detected temperature reaches a predetermined temperature or higher, the heating source is stopped and the rotating drum is stopped. However, since the temperature sensor is inferior in quick response, there is a problem that a rapid temperature rise due to the garment sticking to the outlet cannot be detected in a short time. In addition, since the clothes are rolling in the rotating drum, even if a part of the clothes is overheated with high-temperature air, the temperature sensor is difficult to detect the temperature if the temperature of the entire clothes does not rise. Furthermore, since the clothing once stuck to the outlet as described above is strongly sucked into the outlet by the air supply / exhaust fan, the clothing does not easily peel off from the outlet just by stopping the rotating drum. When the temperature in the rotating drum decreases due to the stop of the heating source, there is a problem that the drying operation is resumed with the clothes stuck to the discharge port.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and the object of the present invention is to easily remove clothes from the discharge port even when the clothes are stuck to the discharge port during the drying operation. An object of the present invention is to provide a clothes dryer capable of quickly preventing damage to clothes caused by heated air.

The present invention includes a rotating drum that houses clothing,
A drum drive for rotating the rotating drum;
An air supply / exhaust fan that allows air sucked from outside the main body case to pass from the outlet to the outlet in the rotary drum, and exhausts the air out of the main body case;
A fan driving unit for driving the supply / exhaust fan;
A heating unit for heating air supplied into the rotating drum;
A clothing sticking detection unit for detecting the rotation speed of the air supply and exhaust fan ;
A clothes dryer having an operation control unit,
The operation control unit operates the drum driving unit, the fan driving unit, and the heating unit to supply heated air into the rotating drum while controlling the fan driving unit with a constant reference energization amount. When it is determined that the clothing sticks to the discharge port based on the number of rotations of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit during the drying operation for drying the clothing , the fan driving unit and The heating unit is stopped, and in a state where heated air is not supplied into the rotating drum, an idle operation for rotating the rotating drum for a predetermined time is executed .
Check that the fan drive unit is operated after the predetermined period of idle operation is performed, and that the clothes are peeled off from the discharge port based on the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit Run,
In the check operation, when it is detected that clothing has been peeled from the discharge port based on the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit, the heating unit is operated to perform the drying operation. resume, the the clothes sticking is detected by the detection unit based on the rotation speed of the supply and exhaust fan sticking clothing to the outlet is detected, it stops the fan drive unit, to resume the air operation It is a clothes dryer.

According to the clothes dryer, since the fan drive unit is stopped when the clothing sticking detection unit detects that the clothing sticks to the discharge port, the air does not pass through the rotating drum, and the clothing is placed in the discharge port. The suction force is weakened. Then, the fan driving unit and the heating unit are stopped, and the idling operation in which only the drum driving unit continues to operate is executed. For this reason, clothing is rotated in a state where air is not supplied into the rotating drum, and clothing attached to the discharge port is easily peeled off from the discharge port. Furthermore, since the fan drive unit and the heating unit are stopped during the above-described idle operation, the heated air is not supplied into the rotating drum, and the clothing may be damaged by the heated air during the idle operation. Absent.
In addition, if clothing sticks to the outlet during drying operation, the amount of air sucked into the main body case will drop rapidly, but if the fan drive unit is controlled with a constant reference current, the supply / exhaust fan will rotate. The number increases with decreasing air volume. On the other hand, when clothes are peeled off from the discharge port due to idling, the air permeability in the rotary drum is improved, so the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan decreases as the amount of air increases. Therefore, if a clothing sticking detection unit that detects the number of rotations of the air supply / exhaust fan is used, it is possible to detect whether the clothing is stuck to the discharge port at an early stage.
Furthermore, according to the clothes dryer, after the idling operation that operates only the drum driving unit, the heating unit is not operated, the fan driving unit is operated, and unheated air is supplied into the rotating drum. Then, when a check operation for rotating the rotating drum is performed and it is detected that the clothes are peeled from the discharge port based on the number of rotations of the air supply / exhaust fan, the drying operation is resumed by operating the heating unit. The clothes can be dried quickly without stopping the operation of the entire dryer. In addition, if it is detected that clothing has stuck to the discharge port even after the idling operation, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idling operation is resumed, so that the clothing can be reliably peeled off from the ejection port and the clothing is discharged. It is possible to prevent the drying operation from being resumed while sticking to the outlet.

In the clothes dryer, preferably, the operation control unit, when the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit is equal to or higher than a first interrupted rotation speed during the drying operation, is It is determined that clothing sticks to the exit, the idle operation is performed for a predetermined time,
After executing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated to determine whether or not the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit is equal to or less than a first resumable rotation speed. Execute check operation,
In the first check operation, when the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or lower than the first restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, and the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is If the rotation speed is greater than the first resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is resumed.

  As described above, when the fan drive unit is controlled with a constant reference energization amount, the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan increases as the air amount decreases due to the garment sticking to the discharge port. Therefore, if the case where the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan is equal to or higher than the first interruption rotation speed is detected as the garment sticking to the discharge port, the garment sticking to the discharge port can be reliably detected.

Further , according to the clothes dryer, after the idling operation in which only the drum driving unit is operated, the heating unit is not operated, the fan driving unit is operated, and unheated air is supplied into the rotating drum. In the state, the first check operation for rotating the rotary drum is performed. Therefore, when clothes are peeled off from the discharge port due to idling, the air permeability in the rotating drum should be improved, and thereby the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan should be reduced. By determining whether or not the rotation speed is equal to or less than the first restart allowable rotation speed, it is possible to determine whether or not the clothes are securely attached to the discharge port without being overheated. In the first check operation, since the fan drive unit and the drum drive unit are in operation, the heating unit is operated when the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or less than the first resumable rotation speed. Thus, the drying operation can be resumed in a short time.
On the other hand, in the first check operation, if the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is greater than the first resumable rotation speed, it can be determined that the clothing has not been peeled off from the discharge port. Resuming the idle driving that activates only the clothes can surely remove the clothes from the outlet.

In the clothes dryer, it is preferable that the operation control unit is configured so that a change amount of the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothes sticking detection unit within a predetermined time is second interrupted during the drying operation. If it is equal to or greater than the number of rotations, it is determined that the clothing has stuck to the outlet, and the idle operation is performed for a predetermined time,
After performing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit within a certain time is equal to or less than the second resumable rotation speed. Perform a second check operation to determine whether or not
In the second check operation, when the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is equal to or less than the second restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, When the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is larger than the second resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is restarted.

  As described above, when the fan drive unit is controlled with a constant reference energization amount, the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan increases in a very short time as the air amount decreases due to the clothing sticking to the discharge port. To do. Therefore, if the amount of change in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is equal to or greater than the second interrupted rotation speed, it is not necessary to wait for the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan to exceed the first interrupted rotation speed. Further, it is possible to shift to idle driving at an early stage. Thereby, damage to clothing can be prevented more quickly.

Further , according to the clothes dryer, after the idling operation in which only the drum driving unit is operated, the heating unit is not operated, the fan driving unit is operated, and unheated air is supplied into the rotating drum. In this state, a second check operation for rotating the rotary drum is performed. Therefore, when clothes are peeled off from the discharge port due to idling, the air permeability in the rotating drum should be improved, and the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan should be reduced accordingly. By determining whether the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or less than the second restart allowable rotation speed, it is possible to quickly determine whether the clothes are securely attached to the discharge port without being overheated. Can be determined. In the second check operation, since the fan drive unit and the drum drive unit are in operation, when the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or less than the second resumable rotation speed, the heating unit is turned on. By operating, the drying operation can be resumed in a short time.
On the other hand, in the second check operation, if the amount of change in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan is larger than the second restart allowable rotation speed, it can be determined that the clothing has not been peeled off from the discharge port. By restarting the idling operation in which only the drum driving unit is operated, the clothes can be reliably peeled off from the discharge port.

Furthermore, in the clothes dryer, preferably, the operation control unit is configured to detect the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit during the drying operation and the supply / exhaust fan at the initial stage of the drying operation. When the difference from the initial rotational speed is equal to or greater than the third interrupted rotational speed, it is determined that clothing has stuck to the discharge port, and the idle operation is performed for a predetermined time.
After executing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit and the initial rotation speed is a third resumable rotation speed Perform a third check operation to determine whether
In the third check operation, when the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is equal to or less than the third restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, When the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is larger than the third resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is restarted.

As described above, when the fan drive unit is controlled with a constant reference energization amount, the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan increases in a short time as the air amount decreases due to the clothing sticking to the discharge port. . On the other hand, since the air permeability in the rotary drum changes depending on the amount of clothing, the initial rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan in the initial stage of the drying operation changes. Accordingly, if it is determined that the clothing has stuck to the discharge port when the difference between the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan during the drying operation and the initial rotational speed at the initial stage of the drying operation is equal to or greater than the third interrupted rotational speed, Regardless of the amount, it is possible to shift to idle operation at an early stage. Thereby, damage to clothing can be prevented quickly.
Further, according to the clothes dryer, after the idling operation in which only the drum driving unit is operated, the heating unit is not operated, the fan driving unit is operated, and unheated air is supplied into the rotating drum. In this state, a third check operation for rotating the rotary drum is performed. Therefore, when clothes are peeled off from the discharge port due to idling, the air permeability in the rotary drum should be improved, and thereby the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan should be reduced. By judging whether or not the difference between the rotation speed and the initial rotation speed is equal to or less than the third restart allowable rotation speed, it is determined whether or not the clothes are securely attached to the discharge port without being overheated. it can. In the third check operation, since the fan drive unit and the drum drive unit are operating, the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is equal to or less than the third resumable rotation speed. By operating the heating unit, the drying operation can be resumed in a short time.
On the other hand, in the third check operation, if the difference between the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotational speed is greater than the third restart allowable rotational speed, it can be determined that the clothing has not been peeled from the discharge port. If it stops and the idle driving | operation which operates only a drum drive part is restarted, clothing can be reliably peeled from a discharge port.

In any of the clothes dryers,
The operation control unit stops the drum driving unit and detects an operation error when the clothing sticking detection unit detects that the clothing sticks to the discharge port after continuously performing the idling operation a plurality of times. You may notify.

According to the clothes dryer, when the fan driving unit and the heating unit are stopped and only the drum driving unit is operated, even if the idle operation is continuously performed a plurality of times, the clothing is stuck to the discharge port. Because the clothes cannot be peeled off from the discharge port only by the rotation of the clothes in the rotating drum, if the drum driving unit is also stopped and an operation error is notified, unnecessary driving can be stopped early and the user can be stopped. The sticking of clothes can be recognized.

  As described above, according to the present invention, even when clothes are stuck to the discharge port during the drying operation, the clothes can be easily peeled off from the discharge port. Thereby, damage to clothing due to air heated to a high temperature can be prevented quickly.

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an example of a clothes dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a control flowchart showing an example of the control operation of the clothes dryer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a control flow diagram showing another example of the control operation of the clothes dryer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a control flowchart showing still another example of the control operation of the clothes dryer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a graph showing the relationship between the number of rotations of the air supply / exhaust fan and the state where the clothes are stuck to the discharge port in the clothes dryer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, the clothes dryer of the present embodiment will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

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

  As shown in FIG. 1, a clothes dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a rectangular box-shaped main body case 10 and a door 11 that covers a clothes outlet 101 that is opened on the front side of the main body case 10. The outline is composed of.

  The main body case 10 accommodates a rotating drum 12 having an open cylindrical shape for accommodating the clothing M and having a lifter (not shown) on the inner peripheral wall. The rotating drum 12 is incorporated in the main body case 10 in a lateral orientation inclined at about 90 degrees so that the open end faces the front surface of the main body case 10, and the inner peripheral surface of the front opening portion is the clothing outlet 101. The ring plate 13 fixed to the inner periphery of the ring plate 13 is supported by the outer periphery of the ring plate 13, and the center portion of the back wall 121 is supported by the support shaft 14 provided on the fixed wall 102 on the back side in the main body case 10.

  The fixed wall 102 that supports the support shaft 14 is provided with an air intake port 104 for taking the air in the main body case 10 into the gap S <b> 1 between the back wall 121 of the rotary drum 12 and the fixed wall 102. When the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is operated, the air in the main body case 10 is guided through the air intake 104 into the gap S1.

  Further, on the surface of the fixed wall 102 on the gap S1 side, a cylindrical heat shield plate 105 that opens toward the inner wall 121 of the rotary drum 12 is disposed so as to surround the outer periphery of the support shaft 14 with a predetermined interval. Has been.

  The rotating drum 12 is connected to a drum motor 122 as a drum driving unit, and the rotating drum 12 is configured to freely rotate around the support shaft 14 by the driving force of the drum motor 122. ing.

  A plurality of air outlets 123 are formed in the back wall 121 of the rotary drum 12, and air in the main body case 10 and combustion gas discharged from a gas burner 161 described later are blown to the back side of the back wall 121. A hot air duct 15 for guiding to the outlet 123 is disposed.

  The hot air duct 15 extends from the back side of the back wall 121 of the rotating drum 12 to a space in the lower part of the main body case 10 below the rotating drum 12. A burner unit 16, which is a heating unit that heats air introduced into the rotary drum 12 through the duct 15, is disposed.

  The burner unit 16 includes a gas burner 161 serving as a heating source, a valve device 162, and the like. When a proportional valve (not shown) incorporated in the valve device 162 is opened, a predetermined amount of air enters the gas burner 161 together with air around the burner unit 16. Gas is fed and ignited above the flame hole of the gas burner 161. Then, the fed gas is discharged into the warm air duct 15 as combustion gas, and heated while heating the air in the main body case 10 led to the lower end open portion of the warm air duct 15 by the draft effect. Together with air, the air is supplied into the rotary drum 12 from the downstream end of the hot air duct 15 through the outlet 123.

  In the space above the rotating drum 12 and in the upper part of the main body case 10, an exhaust duct 17 for guiding the air in the rotating drum 12 guided from a communication passage 110 described later to the outside of the main body case 10 is disposed. .

  An exhaust inlet 171 on one end side of the exhaust duct 17 is opened on the front side of the main body case 10 and above the clothing outlet 101, and an exhaust outlet 172 on the other end side is opened on the upper surface of the main body case 10. . In addition, a supply / exhaust fan 18 for sending air outside the main body case 10 or air heated by the gas burner 161 into the rotary drum 12 is incorporated in an intermediate portion of the exhaust duct 17.

  A fan motor 181 that is a fan drive unit is connected to the air supply / exhaust fan 18, and the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is configured to freely rotate around a support shaft 182 by the driving force of the fan motor 181. Yes. In this way, when the rotary drum 12 and the air supply / exhaust fan 18 are driven by different driving sources, respectively, when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111 described later, the rotary drum 12 and the air supply / exhaust fan 18 are made independent. Can be rotated and stopped.

  The fan motor 181 is provided with a rotation speed sensor 183 that detects the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 as a clothing sticking detection unit. The rotation speed sensor 183 is configured by a Hall IC that generates a predetermined number of pulses for each rotation of the fan motor 181, and a signal detected by the rotation speed sensor 183 is output to the control circuit 30.

  On the other hand, a discharge port 111 connected to the clothing outlet 101 and a connection port 112 connected to the exhaust inlet 171 when the door 11 is closed are provided inside the door 11. In addition, an air communication passage 110 that connects the discharge port 111 and the connection port 112 is formed.

  Therefore, when the fan motor 181 is operated with the door 11 closed to rotate the air supply / exhaust fan 18, air is sucked into the main body case 10 from the outside of the main body case 10, and the air is sucked into the rotary drum 12 from the outlet 123. To be supplied. The air supplied into the rotary drum 12 flows toward the discharge port 111, is sent out from the discharge port 111 through the communication passage 110 inside the door 11 and into the exhaust duct 17, and further from the exhaust outlet 172 to the main body case 10. It is discharged outside.

  An air supply port 103 that connects the inside and the outside of the main body case 10 is provided on the side surface of the main body case 10, and the air that is sent into the rotary drum 12 by the air supply / exhaust fan 18 flows into the main body case 10 from the air supply port 103. It is taken in.

  A removable mesh-like filter 19 is attached to the discharge passage 111 on the side of the communication passage 110, and the air in the rotary drum 12 is sent into the exhaust duct 17 through the discharge port 111 and the communication passage 110. The filter 19 removes dust and lint floating in the rotary drum 12.

  A clothing temperature sensor 20 for detecting the temperature of the clothing M is provided on the back side of the rotary drum 12 facing the discharge port 111. Specifically, a disc-shaped flange 141 is fixed to an end of the support shaft 14 on the inner side of the rotary drum 12 so as to project from the rotation center of the rotary drum 12, which is the center of the support shaft 14, to the outer circumferential direction. The clothing temperature sensor 20 is attached to the front surface of the flange 141 that protrudes inward from the inner wall 121 of the rotary drum 12. A signal detected by the clothing temperature sensor 20 is output to the control circuit 30.

  The outer periphery of the flange 141 is covered with an annular shaft cover 125 fixed to the back wall 121 of the rotary drum 12. A predetermined gap is formed between the inner peripheral edge of the shaft cover 125 and the outer peripheral end surface of the flange 141 so that they do not come into contact with each other even when the rotary drum 12 rotates.

  Below the front surface of the door 11 of the main body case 10, an operation unit 40 in which a lamp for displaying an operation error is arranged in addition to various operation switches such as an operation switch and a stop switch.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the main body case 10, an operation for controlling the overall operation of the clothes dryer, such as a rotating operation of the rotating drum 12, an air heating operation by the burner unit 16, and a rotating operation of the air supply / exhaust fan 18. A control circuit 30 is incorporated as a control unit, and the above-described drum motor 122, valve device 162, fan motor 181, rotation speed sensor 183, clothing temperature sensor 20, operation switch, lamp, and the like are electrically connected to the control circuit 30. Connected through.

  Although not shown in the drawing, the control circuit 30 performs the operation of the drum motor 122 and the operation of the drum motor, the operation of the fan motor 181 and the operation of the fan operation circuit, and the operation of the burner unit 16 to stop the ignition of the gas burner 161. A point-extinguishing circuit that performs fire extinguishing, a drying determination circuit that determines the end timing of the drying operation based on the dry state of the clothing M, a monitoring circuit that monitors the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 output from the rotational speed sensor 183, The circuit includes a sticking determination circuit that determines sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 based on the rotational speed of the exhaust fan 18, and various operations such as a dry operation, an empty operation, and a check operation are performed by these circuits. .

  First, the driving operation in the drying operation will be described. When the user performs an operation of starting the drying operation in which the operation switch is turned on, the fan motor 181 is operated with a predetermined reference energization amount to rotate the supply / exhaust fan 18 and the drum motor 122 is operated to rotate the rotating drum 12. And a series of initial drying operations for starting the burner unit 16 and igniting the gas burner 161 are started. Then, the air sucked into the main body case 10 from the outside of the main body case 10 by the rotation of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is heated by the combustion gas released from the gas burner 161 and led to the hot air duct 15 together with the combustion gas, It is supplied into the rotary drum 12 from the outlet 123. The heated air supplied into the rotary drum 12 flows toward the discharge port 111 inside the door 11 while evaporating the moisture of the clothing M, and is discharged to the communication passage 110 through the discharge port 111. . Further, the heated air discharged to the communication passage 110 is guided to the exhaust duct 17 through the communication passage 110 and is discharged from the exhaust outlet 172 to the outside of the main body case 10. As a result, the clothes M are gradually dried while being stirred in the rotary drum 12. In the present embodiment, when the fan motor 181 is operated in a state where the clothing M is not put in the rotary drum 12, the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is within a range of rotation speeds of 1,800 to 1,900 rpm. The reference energization amount is set so that the motor rotates.

  If the temperature of the garment M contacting the garment temperature sensor 20 during the drying operation is higher than a preset reference temperature, a proportional valve (not shown) is throttled to a predetermined opening to reduce the amount of released combustion gas and heat the air Decrease the degree. On the other hand, if the temperature of the garment M is lower than the reference temperature, a proportional valve (not shown) is opened to a predetermined opening degree to increase the amount of combustion gas released and increase the degree of air heating.

  Thereafter, when the garment M is in a predetermined dry state, the gas burner 161 is extinguished, and the supply / exhaust fan 18 and the rotary drum 12 are maintained in a rotating state, and the garment M is cooled. As a result, the clothing M is gradually removed from heat while being stirred in the rotary drum 12. And if predetermined time passes after starting cooling operation, the rotation of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 and the rotating drum 12 will be stopped as the clothing M was cooled moderately, and operation | movement will be complete | finished.

(Embodiment 1)
Next, regarding an example of the operation operation when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111 during the drying operation, a control flow in FIG. 2 and a graph showing changes in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 in FIG. A specific description will be given with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows the result of measuring the change in the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 when a nylon sheet is placed in the rotary drum 12 and the drying operation is performed with the clothes dryer described above.

  When the drying operation is started (step ST1), the control circuit 30 resets the history counter of the number of consecutive times of the idling operation used when detecting the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 to 0 (step ST2). ).

  Next, the control circuit 30 monitors the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 output from the rotational speed sensor 183 by the monitoring circuit, and the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is a predetermined first interrupted rotational speed (for example, 2,000 rpm). ) It is determined by the sticking determination circuit whether or not the above is reached (step ST3).

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the drying operation is started, the supply / exhaust fan 18 rotates at a substantially constant rotation speed, but a phenomenon in which the rotation speed rapidly increases during the drying operation occurs. . This is because the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111, and as a result, the amount of heated air passing through the rotary drum 12 rapidly decreases. Therefore, after the drying operation is started, when the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is increased to a predetermined first interruption rotation speed or more, it can be determined that the clothing M has stuck to the discharge port 111. In this way, if the rotation of the supply / exhaust fan 18 is used to detect the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111, as shown in FIG. Since the rotation speed of the exhaust fan 18 increases, the sticking of the clothing M can be detected more quickly than when the temperature of the heated air is measured by the temperature sensor.

  If the drying operation is continued in a state where the clothing M is stuck to the discharge port 111 as described above, the amount of air sucked into the main body case 10 is reduced due to a decrease in the air permeability of the rotary drum 12. The sucked air is superheated by the gas burner 161, and the air heated to a high temperature is supplied into the rotary drum 12, and the clothes M are damaged.

  For this reason, when it is determined that the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan 18 is equal to or higher than the first interrupted rotational speed (YES in step ST3), first, the control circuit 30 continues the idle operation from the execution history of the idle operation. (Step ST4), and if the idling operation is not continuously executed (YES in step ST4), 1 is added to the history counter of the idling continuous execution count (step ST4). ST5). The point fire extinguishing circuit and the fan operating circuit stop the burner unit 16 and the fan motor 181 respectively, continue the operation of only the drum motor 122, and the heated drum is not supplied with heated air. An idling operation for rotating 12 is performed (step ST6). As a result, the force for sucking the clothing M to the discharge port 111 is weakened, and the rotating drum 12 is rotated for a predetermined time (for example, 30 seconds) in this state, so that the clothing M attached to the discharge port 111 is easily peeled off. (Step ST7). Moreover, since the burner unit 16 is stopped during the idling operation, even if the amount of air sucked into the main body case 10 from the outside of the main body case 10 is reduced, the air is not overheated and is heated to a high temperature. As a result, the clothing M is not damaged.

  When idling is performed for a predetermined time (YES in step ST7), the control circuit 30 operates the fan motor 181 by the fan operation circuit without operating the burner unit 16, and rotates the rotating drum 12 in the rotating drum 12. A first check operation for supplying unheated air is performed (step ST8).

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5, if the clothing M is peeled from the discharge port 111, the air permeability in the rotary drum 12 is improved, and therefore the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 detected by the rotational speed sensor 183. Decrease. Therefore, the control circuit 30 operates the fan motor 181 for a predetermined time (for example, 15 seconds) by the fan operation circuit (YES in step ST9), and then operates the fan motor 181 with the sticking determination circuit. It is determined again whether the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan 18 detected by the rotation speed sensor 183 is equal to or lower than a predetermined first restart allowable rotation speed (for example, 1,900 rpm) (step ST10). If the rotation speed of supply / exhaust fan 18 detected by rotation speed sensor 183 is equal to or less than the first resumable rotation speed (YES in step ST10), it is determined that clothing M has been peeled from discharge port 111, and the point fire extinguishing circuit The burner unit 16 is ignited and the drying operation is resumed (step ST1). Thereby, drying operation can be restarted without stopping the clothes dryer once. Note that the first resumable rotation speed may be the same as or different from the first suspension rotation speed.

  On the other hand, even after the idling operation is performed for a predetermined time, if the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is larger than the first resumable rotation speed in the first check operation (NO in step ST10), the air in the rotary drum 12 still remains. Since the air permeability is lowered, the clothing M is still attached to the discharge port 111. For this reason, 1 is added to the number of continuous executions of the idling operation (step ST5), the fan motor 181 is stopped again by the fan operation circuit, and the operation of only the drum motor 122 is continued to supply air into the rotary drum 12. In the state that is not performed, the idle operation for rotating the rotary drum 12 is resumed (step ST6).

  By performing the idling operation a plurality of times, the stuck clothing M is easily peeled off from the discharge port 111, and air permeability in the rotary drum 12 can be recovered. If the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 does not decrease even if the idle operation is continuously performed a plurality of times (NO in step ST4), it is difficult to remove the clothing M from the discharge port 111 in the idle operation. The control circuit 30 stops the fan motor 181 by the fan operation circuit, stops the drum motor 122 by the drum operation circuit, and notifies an operation error from a notification unit such as a lamp (step ST11). End driving. Thereby, while being able to stop unnecessary driving | running | working at an early stage, a user can be made to recognize sticking of the clothing M. Further, according to the above operation stop, the drying operation is not resumed even if the temperature in the rotary drum 12 is lowered, and therefore the drying operation is prevented from being resumed while the clothing M is stuck to the discharge port 111. it can.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, regarding another example of the operation operation when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111 during the drying operation, the control flow in FIG. 3 and the change in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 in FIG. 5 are shown. A specific description will be given with reference to the graph. The control operation in the second embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment except that the method for detecting the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 is different, and therefore only the different parts will be mainly described.

  As in the first embodiment, after the drying operation is started (steps ST21 to ST22), when the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 increases, the control circuit 30 controls the air supply / exhaust fan 18 within a certain time. Based on the amount of change in the rotational speed (Δ rotational speed), the garment M is detected as sticking to the outlet 111 (step ST23). That is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111 during the drying operation, the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 increases rapidly, but the rotational speed reaches the first interrupted rotational speed. A certain amount of time is required to increase and stabilize. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the control circuit 30 monitors the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan 18 every short time (for example, 1 second) by the monitoring circuit and uses a sticking determination circuit for a certain time (for example, 10 seconds). ) Is determined whether or not the amount of change in the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is equal to or greater than a predetermined second interrupted rotational speed (for example, 100 rpm) (step ST23). Thereby, the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 can be detected more rapidly than the first embodiment when the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 starts to increase.

  If the amount of change in the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan 18 within the predetermined time is equal to or greater than the second interrupted rotational speed (YES in step ST23), it is determined that the clothing M has stuck to the discharge port 111, and Similarly, the control circuit 30 stops the burner unit 16 and the fan motor 181 with the point fire extinguishing circuit and the fan drive circuit, respectively, and executes the idling operation (step ST26).

  Further, after the idling operation is executed for a predetermined time (YES in step ST27), the control circuit 30 operates the fan motor 181 by the fan operation circuit without operating the burner unit 16, as in the first embodiment. The second check operation for supplying unheated air into the rotating rotary drum 12 is performed (step ST28), and the fan motor 181 is operated for a short time by the monitoring circuit in the same manner as described above. The number of rotations (for example, 1 second) is monitored. Then, the amount of change in the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 within a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds) detected by the rotational speed sensor 183 by the sticking determination circuit is less than or equal to a predetermined second restart allowable rotational speed (for example, 100 rpm). It is determined again whether or not there is (step ST30). Thereby, drying operation can be restarted more rapidly.

  If the amount of change in the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 within a certain period of time is greater than the second resumable rotational speed even if the idle operation is performed a plurality of times, the control circuit 30 operates the fan as in the first embodiment. The fan motor 181 is stopped by the circuit, and the drum motor 122 is stopped by the drum operation circuit, and an operation error is notified from a notification unit such as a lamp (step ST31). Note that the second resumable rotation speed may be the same as or different from the second suspension rotation speed.

(Embodiment 3)
Next, regarding another example of the operation operation when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111 during the drying operation, the control flow in FIG. 4 and the change in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 in FIG. 5 are shown. A specific description will be given with reference to the graph. The control operation in the third embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment except that the method for detecting the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 is different, and therefore only the different parts will be mainly described.

  As in the first embodiment, when the drying operation is started (step ST41), the control circuit 30 first starts the initial operation of the supply / exhaust fan 18 at the initial stage of the drying operation (for example, 10 seconds after the fan motor 181 is operated). The rotational speed is stored (step ST42).

  As in the first embodiment, after the drying operation is started, the control circuit 30 monitors the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 by the monitoring circuit, and the difference (rotation) between the rotation speed and the initial rotation speed by the sticking determination circuit. It is determined whether or not (number-initial rotational speed) is equal to or higher than a predetermined third interrupted rotational speed (for example, 200 rpm). That is, the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 varies depending on the amount of clothing M accommodated in the rotary drum 12. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, at the initial stage of the drying operation, there is a high possibility that the clothing M does not stick to the discharge port 111. Therefore, the difference between the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 during the drying operation and the initial rotational speed is large. If it is determined whether the rotation speed is equal to or higher than the third interrupted rotation speed (for example, 200 rpm) (step ST44), the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 can be reliably detected regardless of the amount of the clothing M.

  If the difference in the rotational speed is equal to or greater than the third interrupted rotational speed (YES in step ST44), it is determined that clothing M has stuck to the discharge port 111, and the control circuit 30 performs the same operation as in the first embodiment. The burner unit 16 and the fan motor 181 are stopped by the fire extinguishing circuit and the fan drive circuit, respectively, and the idling operation is executed (step ST47).

  Further, after the idling operation is performed for a predetermined time (YES in step ST48), the control circuit 30 operates the fan motor 181 by the fan operation circuit without operating the burner unit 16, as in the first embodiment. The third check operation for supplying unheated air into the rotating rotary drum 12 is performed for a predetermined time (steps ST49 to ST50), and the fan motor 181 is operated and monitored in the same manner as described above. The rotational speed is monitored by a circuit, and the difference between the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan 18 detected by the rotational speed sensor 183 by the sticking determination circuit and the initial rotational speed is equal to or less than a predetermined third restart allowable rotational speed (for example, 200 rpm). Is again determined (step ST51). Thereby, drying operation can be restarted more rapidly.

  Even if the idling is performed a plurality of times, if the difference in the rotational speed is larger than the third restart allowable rotational speed, the control circuit 30 stops the fan motor 181 by the fan operating circuit, as in the first embodiment, The drum motor 122 is stopped by the drum operation circuit, and an operation error is notified from a notification unit such as a lamp (step ST52). Note that the third resumable rotation speed may be the same as or different from the third suspension rotation speed.

(Other embodiments)
a) In the first to third embodiments, the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111 and the peeling of the clothing M from the discharge port 111 are detected by the respective detection methods, but these detection methods may be combined. .

b) In the above embodiment, the fan motor 181 is controlled with a single reference energization amount during the drying operation. However, the fan motor is controlled with a plurality of reference energization amounts due to differences in drying conditions such as when the amount of clothes M is different. 181 may be controlled. In the above embodiment, the rotary drum 12 is rotated at a constant rotational speed during the idling operation. However, the rotary drum 12 may be rotated at different rotational speeds, and forward rotation and reverse rotation are repeated. May be.

c) In the above embodiment, when the fan drive unit is operated with a constant reference energization amount during the drying operation, the increase in the rotation speed of the air supply / exhaust fan 18 detects the sticking of the clothing M to the discharge port 111. However, other detection methods may be used. For example, if the fan motor 181 is controlled so as to rotate the supply / exhaust fan 18 at a constant reference rotational speed during the drying operation, the air permeability in the rotary drum 12 can be obtained when the clothing M sticks to the discharge port 111. Since the load on the air supply / exhaust fan 18 is reduced due to the decrease in power, the energization amount decreases. Therefore, for example, when the energization amount is decreased by a predetermined value or more, it can be detected as the garment M sticking to the discharge port 111.

  Although the present invention has been described in detail above, examples of preferred embodiments of the present invention are as follows.

According to a preferred aspect of the present invention,
A rotating drum for housing clothing;
A drum drive for rotating the rotating drum;
An air supply / exhaust fan that allows air sucked from outside the main body case to pass from the outlet to the outlet in the rotary drum, and exhausts the air out of the main body case;
A fan driving unit for driving the supply / exhaust fan;
A heating unit for heating air supplied into the rotating drum;
A clothing sticking detection unit for detecting the rotation speed of the air supply and exhaust fan;
A clothes dryer having an operation control unit that performs a drying operation while controlling the fan drive unit with a constant reference energization amount,
The operation controller is
During the drying operation in which the drum driving unit, the fan driving unit, and the heating unit are operated to supply heated air into the rotary drum to dry clothes, the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is first. When the number of rotations exceeds the interrupted rotation number, it is determined that clothing has stuck to the discharge port, the fan driving unit and the heating unit are stopped, and the heated air is not supplied into the rotating drum Thus, a clothes dryer is provided that performs an idle operation of rotating the rotating drum for a predetermined time.

Preferably, in the clothes dryer of the above aspect,
The operation controller is
After performing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated to execute a first check operation for determining whether or not the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan decreases to a first restart allowable rotation speed or less.
In the first check operation, when the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or lower than the first restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, and the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is If the rotation speed is greater than the first resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is resumed.

According to another preferred aspect of the present invention,
A rotating drum for housing clothing;
A drum drive for rotating the rotating drum;
An air supply / exhaust fan that allows air sucked from outside the main body case to pass from the outlet to the outlet in the rotary drum, and exhausts the air out of the main body case;
A fan driving unit for driving the supply / exhaust fan;
A heating unit for heating air supplied into the rotating drum;
A clothing sticking detection unit for detecting the rotation speed of the air supply and exhaust fan;
A clothes dryer having an operation control unit that performs a drying operation while controlling the fan drive unit with a constant reference energization amount,
The operation controller is
During the drying operation in which the drum driving unit, the fan driving unit, and the heating unit are operated and heated air is supplied into the rotating drum to dry the clothes, a certain time of the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan When the amount of change in the temperature increases more than the second interrupted rotation speed, it is determined that the clothing has stuck to the discharge port, the fan driving unit and the heating unit are stopped, and the heated air is There is provided a clothes dryer that performs an idling operation in which the rotating drum is rotated for a predetermined time without being supplied into the rotating drum.

Preferably, in the clothes dryer of the above aspect,
The operation controller is
After performing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit within a certain time is equal to or less than the second resumable rotation speed. Perform a second check operation to determine whether or not
In the second check operation, when the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is equal to or less than the second restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, When the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is larger than the second resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is restarted.

According to yet another preferred aspect of the present invention,
A rotating drum for housing clothing;
A drum drive for rotating the rotating drum;
An air supply / exhaust fan that allows air sucked from outside the main body case to pass from the outlet to the outlet in the rotary drum, and exhausts the air out of the main body case;
A fan driving unit for driving the supply / exhaust fan;
A heating unit for heating air supplied into the rotating drum;
A clothing sticking detection unit for detecting the rotation speed of the air supply and exhaust fan;
A clothes dryer having an operation control unit that performs a drying operation while controlling the fan drive unit with a constant reference energization amount,
The operation control unit activates the drum driving unit, the fan driving unit, and the heating unit, and supplies the heated air into the rotating drum to dry the clothing to detect the clothing sticking. If the difference between the rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan detected by the unit and the initial rotational speed of the air supply / exhaust fan at the initial stage of the drying operation is equal to or greater than the third interrupted rotational speed, clothing sticks to the discharge port. The clothes dryer that performs the idling operation for rotating the rotating drum for a predetermined time in a state where the fan driving unit and the heating unit are stopped and the heated air is not supplied into the rotating drum. Is provided.

Preferably, in the clothes dryer of the above aspect,
The operation controller is
After executing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit and the initial rotation speed is a third resumable rotation speed Perform a third check operation to determine whether
In the third check operation, when the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is equal to or less than the third restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, When the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is larger than the third resumable rotation speed, the fan drive unit is stopped and the idle operation is restarted.

In the clothes dryer in any of the above aspects, preferably,
The operation control unit stops the drum driving unit and detects an operation error when the clothing sticking detection unit detects that the clothing sticks to the discharge port after continuously performing the idling operation a plurality of times. Inform.

10 Body case 12 Rotating drum 16 Burner unit (heating unit)
18 Supply / Exhaust Fan 30 Control Circuit (Operation Control Unit)
111 Discharge port 122 Drum motor (drum drive unit)
123 Air outlet 181 Fan motor (fan drive unit)
183 Rotational speed sensor (detection part with clothing)

Claims (5)

A rotating drum for housing clothing;
A drum drive for rotating the rotating drum;
An air supply / exhaust fan that allows air sucked from outside the main body case to pass from the outlet to the outlet in the rotary drum, and exhausts the air out of the main body case;
A fan driving unit for driving the supply / exhaust fan;
A heating unit for heating air supplied into the rotating drum;
A clothing sticking detection unit for detecting the rotation speed of the air supply and exhaust fan ;
A clothes dryer having an operation control unit,
The operation control unit operates the drum driving unit, the fan driving unit, and the heating unit to supply heated air into the rotating drum while controlling the fan driving unit with a constant reference energization amount. When it is determined that the clothing sticks to the discharge port based on the rotational speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit during the drying operation for drying the clothing , the fan driving unit and The heating unit is stopped, and in a state where heated air is not supplied into the rotating drum, an idle operation for rotating the rotating drum for a predetermined time is executed .
Check that the fan drive unit is operated after the predetermined period of idle operation is performed, and that the clothes are peeled off from the discharge port based on the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit Run,
In the check operation, when it is detected that clothing has been peeled from the discharge port based on the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit, the heating unit is operated to perform the drying operation. resume, the the clothes sticking is detected by the detection unit based on the rotation speed of the supply and exhaust fan sticking clothing to the outlet is detected, it stops the fan drive unit, to resume the air operation Clothes dryer. The clothes dryer according to claim 1,
When the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit is equal to or higher than the first interrupted rotation number during the drying operation, the operation control unit has stuck clothing to the discharge port. And determining that the idling is performed for a predetermined time,
After executing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated to determine whether or not the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit is equal to or less than a first resumable rotation speed. Execute check operation,
In the first check operation, when the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is equal to or lower than the first restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, and the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan is A clothes dryer that stops the fan drive unit and restarts the idling operation when the rotation speed is greater than the first resumable rotation speed. The clothes dryer according to claim 1,
When the change amount of the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit within a certain time during the drying operation is equal to or greater than a second interrupted rotation speed during the drying operation, It is determined that there is a sticking of clothing, and the idling is performed for a predetermined time,
After performing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit within a certain time is equal to or less than the second resumable rotation speed. Perform a second check operation to determine whether or not
In the second check operation, when the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a certain time is equal to or less than the second restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, The clothes dryer which stops the fan drive part and restarts the idling operation when the amount of change in the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan within a predetermined time is greater than the second resumable rotation speed. The clothes dryer according to claim 1,
The operation control unit determines that a difference between a rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit during the drying operation and an initial rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan in an initial drying operation is a third interrupted rotation. If the number is greater than or equal to the number, it is determined that the clothing sticks to the discharge port, the idle operation is performed for a predetermined time,
After executing the idling operation for the predetermined time, the fan driving unit is operated, and the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit and the initial rotation speed is a third resumable rotation speed Perform a third check operation to determine whether
In the third check operation, when the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is equal to or less than the third restart allowable rotation speed, the heating unit is operated to restart the drying operation, When the difference between the rotation speed of the supply / exhaust fan and the initial rotation speed is greater than the third resumable rotation speed, the clothes dryer stops the fan driving unit and restarts the idling operation. In the clothes dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The operation control unit is configured to detect clothing sticking to the discharge port based on the number of rotations of the supply / exhaust fan detected by the clothing sticking detection unit after continuously performing the idling operation a plurality of times. A clothes dryer that stops the drum driving unit and notifies an operation error.