JP5683251B2 - Washing and drying machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a washing and drying machine provided with a drying air path for circulating drying air in a rotating drum that rotates inside a washing tub.

  A drum-type washing and drying machine that has been widely used in recent years supports a bottomed cylindrical washing tub in an outer casing in a horizontal position or an oblique horizontal position, and rotates coaxially inside the washing tub. A bottomed cylindrical rotary drum is accommodated (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  The washing tub and the rotating drum have an opening that opens on the same side, and the laundry is put into the rotating drum through these openings, and is stored in the washing water collected at the bottom of the washing tub and the rotating drum. It is soaked and repeatedly lifted and dropped by the rotation of the rotating drum, and when dropped, it is struck against the circumferential surface of the rotating drum and washed.

  After the laundry has been washed, most of the residual moisture is dehydrated and then dried by contacting with the drying air introduced into the rotary drum. The drying air is configured as a circulation air passage in which an introduction port and an outlet port that open into the washing tub are connected by an air duct, and the washing tub and the rotating drum are included in the middle.

  The drying air passage is provided with a blower fan that raises the dry air. A cooling unit is provided on the upstream side of the blower fan, and a heater is also provided on the downstream side. The dry air comes into contact with the laundry in the rotating drum, deprives the laundry of moisture, is cooled in the cooling section, becomes dry air from which the contained moisture is condensed and removed, and is heated when passing through the heating section. Circulate back into the rotating drum. The laundry in the rotating drum is dried by repeated contact with the circulating drying air. In the middle of the drying air path, a filter for capturing and removing foreign matters such as yarn waste contained in the drying air is also disposed between the cooling unit and the blower fan.

Japanese Patent No. 4444197

  In the washing / drying machine configured as described above, the inside of the washing tub and the rotating drum becomes a moist environment due to the supply of washing water during the washing operation. Therefore, molds such as black mold, and Staphylococcus aureus There is a possibility that various germs may be generated, and there is a problem that this kind of molds and various germs adhere to the surface of the laundry and deteriorate the finished quality of the laundry.

In order to cope with this problem, conventionally, the rotating drum and the washing tub are made of antibacterial materials, and ion water containing metal ions having antibacterial action such as silver ions (Ag ⁺ ions) is put into the washing tub. Various antibacterial measures such as water supply are taken.

  However, the washing and drying machine includes a drying air passage including a washing tub and a rotating drum. The inside of the drying air passage is kept in a low humidity environment by the action of the drying air flowing inside during the drying operation, but the washing dryer performs only the washing and dehydrating operation and omits the drying operation. If left after such use, the inside of the dry air passage is also moistened, and there is a possibility that the above-mentioned molds and germs may be generated.

  Occurrence of molds and other germs in the dry air passage cannot be prevented by the antibacterial measures described above for the washing tub and the rotating drum. It is introduced into the rotating drum together with the drying air and adheres to the laundry, resulting in a deterioration in the finished quality of the laundry after drying.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and suppresses the generation of molds and bacteria in the dry air passage, and the generated molds and bacteria are introduced into the rotating drum, and the laundry An object of the present invention is to provide a washing / drying machine that can prevent the sticking to adhere and keep the finished quality of the laundry after drying good.

A washing and drying machine according to the present invention includes a washing tub and a rotating drum that rotates inside the washing tub. The laundry inside the rotating drum is washed and dehydrated, and circulates in the drying air passage. In the washer / dryer configured to be brought into contact with the drying air introduced into the rotating drum and dried, the heater is disposed inside the drying air path, and has antibacterial properties. Water supply means for supplying ion water containing metal ions to the inside of the drying air passage, and the water supply position by the water supply means is downstream of the heater, and the drying air is supplied to the inside of the washing tub and the rotating drum. set in the vicinity of the inlet for introducing characterized tare Rukoto.

  In the present invention, ion water is supplied into the dry air passage by the operation of the water supply means, and the generation of molds and germs in the dry air passage is suppressed by the action of metal ions contained in the ion water. Also, ionic water supplied to the drying air passage is fed into the washing tub and the rotating drum together with the drying air, the laundry in the rotating drum is coated with metal ions, and the attached molds and bacteria are decomposed and removed. Prevent excessive adhesion.

Further , ionic water is supplied to the downstream side of the heater provided in the drying air passage and in the vicinity of the introduction port for introducing the drying air into the washing tub and the rotating drum, and the metal ions contained in the ionic water are supplied to the washing tub and Introduce into the rotating drum without fail to effectively exert antibacterial effect on laundry.

  Moreover, the washing / drying machine according to the present invention is characterized in that the water supply means includes a check valve for preventing a backflow of the dry air flowing in the dry air passage.

  In the present invention, the reverse flow of the dry air flowing in the dry air passage is blocked by the check valve so that the ionic water is reliably supplied.

In the washing / drying machine according to the present invention, ionic water containing metal ions having antibacterial properties is supplied into the drying air passage on the downstream side of the heater and in the vicinity of the inlet of the drying air. The generation of molds and other germs can be suppressed, and metal ions can be fed into the rotating drum along with the drying air to coat the laundry being dried, resulting in a good finished quality of the laundry after drying. The present invention has an excellent effect, such as being able to be maintained.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing an appearance of a washing / drying machine according to an embodiment. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows schematically the internal structure of the washing / drying machine which concerns on embodiment. It is front sectional drawing of the washing tub which shows the formation aspect of a derivation | leading-out duct and an introduction duct. It is an expanded sectional view near the support part of a drum motor.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments thereof. FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an external appearance of a washing / drying machine according to the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing an internal configuration of the washing / drying machine according to the embodiment.

  The washing / drying machine shown in FIG. 2 includes a washing tub 2 and a rotating drum 3 inside an outer casing 1 constituting an exterior. The washing tub 2 is a large-diameter bottomed cylindrical body having an opening 20 on the entire surface of one side, and the opening 20 is formed by a plurality of support legs 21 (only one is shown) standing on the bottom surface of the outer casing 1. It is elastically supported with its side facing upward and maintaining an inclined posture in which the axis is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane.

  On the front surface of the outer casing 1 (the left side surface in FIG. 2), a laundry inlet 11 is opened by a lid 10 at a position facing the opening 20 of the laundry tub 2. The space between the two openings 20 is liquid-tightly sealed by the bellows 12. As shown in FIG. 1, a door opening button 13 is provided in the vicinity of the lid 10 on the front surface of the outer casing 1. The lid 10 is opened by operating the door opening button 13.

  The rotating drum 3 is a bottomed cylindrical body slightly smaller in diameter than the washing tub 2, and is a drum fixed at the center of the bottom of the washing tub 2 with the opening 30 on one side facing the inside of the opening 20 of the washing tub 2. The drum 4 is connected to the end of the output shaft 40 of the motor 4 and is rotated coaxially inside the washing tub 2 by driving the drum motor 4.

  A large number of small holes 32 are formed through the entire surface of the peripheral wall of the rotary drum 3, and a plurality of baffles 33 extending in the axial direction are provided on the inner surface of the peripheral wall so as to be evenly spaced in the circumferential direction. ing. In FIG. 2, only a part of the small hole 32 and one baffle 33 are shown in order to avoid complication of the drawing.

  In the washing operation of the washing / drying machine configured as described above, the lid 10 is opened, the laundry is put into the rotary drum 3 through the openings 20 and 30 located inside the charging slot 11, and the lid 10 Is closed, water is supplied into the washing tub 2 as described later, and the drum motor 4 is driven to rotate the rotating drum 3. As described above, the rotary drum 3 includes a large number of small holes 32 and a plurality of baffles 33, and the laundry inside the rotary drum 3 is immersed in the wash water flowing through the small holes 32, and the baffle 33 The lifting and dropping due to the action of (2) are repeated, and the inner surface of the rotating drum 3 is struck and washed when dropped.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an operation panel 15 including an operation unit for various operations and a display unit for various displays is provided on the front upper portion of the outer casing 1. The operation panel 15 is connected to an operation control unit 16 (see FIG. 2) provided on the upper inner side of the outer casing 1, and performs the washing operation as described above, the drying operation described later, and further between these operations. The dehydration operation to be performed is executed as a series of processes or individually independent processes by the operation of the operation control unit 16 according to the operation of the operation panel 15.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a water supply port 50 serving as a connection end to a water supply source such as a water supply is provided on the upper surface of the rear portion of the outer casing 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the water supply port 50 is connected to a water supply valve 51 provided inside the outer casing 1. The water supply valve 51 is a multiple solenoid valve having a plurality of water supply outlets.

  The first water supply outlet of the water supply valve 51 is connected to the upper peripheral surface of the washing tub 2 via the water supply pipe 52, and when the water supply valve 51 is switched to the first water supply outlet, the water supply to the water supply port 50 is Then, it is fed into the inside of the washing tub 2 through the water supply pipe 52 and used for the washing operation described above. In the middle of the water supply pipe 52, a detergent case may be arranged as is well known so that an appropriate amount of detergent is introduced together with the water supply.

  On the other hand, the second water supply outlet of the water supply valve 51 is connected to the front lower part of the washing tub 2 via the cooling water pipe 53. In the washing tub 2, a concave groove 22 extending in the axial length direction is formed on the lower peripheral surface, and a cooling plate 23 is constructed so as to cover the upper portion of the concave groove 22. When the water supply valve 51 is switched to the second water supply outlet, the water supplied to the water supply port 50 is sent to the front upper portion of the cooling plate 23 through the cooling water pipe 53. The cooling plate 23 is inclined with the rear part down along the inclination of the washing tub 2, and the water fed from the cooling water pipe 53 flows rearward along the upper surface of the cooling plate 23. The water flowing in this way is used as cooling water for cooling the drying air circulating as will be described later.

  A water conduit 24 is connected to the rear portion of the groove 22. The water conduit 24 is connected to a cylindrical filter case 25 fixedly supported at the front lower part inside the outer casing 1. Inside the filter case 25 is housed a lint filter that captures foreign matters such as fiber waste. The lower portion of the filter case 25 is connected to a drain pipe 27 laid along the bottom surface of the outer casing 1 via a drain valve 26. A circulation pump 28 is attached to the rear part of the filter case 25, and the discharge side of the circulation pump 28 communicates with the front upper portion of the washing tub 2 through a return pipe 29.

  The washing water supplied into the washing tub 2 is introduced into the filter case 25 through the water conduit 24 and fills the inside of the filter case 25. The washing water inside the filter case 25 is sucked and pressurized by the circulation pump 28 by driving the circulation pump 28, and sent to the upper part of the washing tub 2 through the return pipe 29. The water is ejected from the tip and supplied into the rotary drum 3.

  The circulation pump 28 is driven continuously or intermittently during the aforementioned washing operation. By this driving, water supplied from the return pipe 29 is poured onto the laundry in the rotary drum 3, and the washing effect can be enhanced. The lint filter provided inside the filter case 25 functions to capture and remove foreign matters such as fiber waste contained in the circulating washing water.

  The drain valve 26 provided at the lower part of the filter case 25 is opened after the washing operation. With this opening, the washing water in the washing tub 2 is drained to the drain pipe 27 through the water conduit 24 and the filter case 25. In this drainage, the foreign matter contained in the wash water is captured and removed by the lint filter in the filter case 25 and is not likely to be discharged to the sewer pipe through the drain pipe 27.

  The drying operation of the washing / drying machine is performed through the dehydration operation after the above washing operation. In this drying operation, the rotating drum 3 is rotated by driving the drum motor 4, and drying air is circulated inside the rotating drum 3. The drying air path for circulating the drying air extends along the bottom of the washing tub 2 and includes a lead-out duct 60 and an introduction duct 61 formed integrally with the washing tub 2.

  FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of the washing tub 2 showing how the lead-out duct 60 and the introduction duct 61 are formed. This figure shows the state which looked at the bottom of washing tub 2 from the front, and the upper and lower sides of a figure correspond to the upper and lower sides of FIG. In addition, although many ribs for ensuring the strength are provided on the outer surface of the washing tub 2, these ribs are not shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lead-out duct 60 has an appropriate length in the circumferential direction including the bottom bottom of the washing tub 2 and is provided so as to rise obliquely upward at one side end. . FIG. 3 also shows the concave groove 22 formed as described above on the lower peripheral surface of the washing tub 2 and the cooling plate 23 installed on the upper part of the concave groove 22. It communicates with the outlet 62 that opens into the washing tub 2 at the rear position of the plate 23. The upper end portion of the outlet duct 60 communicates with the outlet pipe 63 that protrudes upward from the upper peripheral surface of the washing tub 2.

  The introduction duct 61 includes a circular portion provided at the center of the bottom surface of the washing tub 2 and a linear portion that continues to the circular portion and rises obliquely upward. The upper end of the straight line portion communicates with an introduction pipe 64 that protrudes upward from the upper peripheral surface of the washing tub 2. An output shaft 40 of the drum motor 4 protrudes at the center position of the circular portion, and an introduction port 65 having a circular cross section that is coaxial with the protruding portion and opens toward the inside of the washing tub 2 is opened. .

  FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the vicinity of the support portion of the drum motor. An output shaft 40 of the drum motor 4, which is partially shown in the figure, is rotatably supported by a bearing 41 and protrudes toward the inside of the washing tub 2, and the protruding end portion rotates via a connection bracket 42. The drum 3 is fixed at the center of the bottom surface. A thin sealing plate 66 is clamped and fixed between the connection bracket 42 and the rotary drum 3. An outer periphery of the sealing plate 66 is provided with a flange that faces the inside of the introduction port 65 at the end of the introduction duct 61, and oil that is fitted and fixed to the introduction port 65 on the outer surface of the flange. A seal 67 is abutted.

  On the bottom surface of the rotary drum 3, a plurality of introduction holes 34 arranged on the outer periphery of the fixed portion of the connection bracket 42 are opened, and these introduction holes 34 are provided at corresponding positions of the sealing plate 66. The communication port 68 communicates with the introduction port 65.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a blower fan 70 for raising dry air is disposed on the upper part of the washing tub 2. The blower fan 70 is unitized together with a suction-side filter 71 and a discharge-side heater 72, and is fixedly supported inside the outer casing 1. The end of the outlet pipe 63 protruding from the upper part of the washing tub 2 is connected to the suction side of the blower fan 70, and the end of the introduction pipe 64 is connected to the discharge side of the blower fan 70.

  In the dry air passage configured as described above, the dry air circulates by driving the blower fan 70. When the blower fan 70 is driven, the drying air is sucked and pressurized from the outlet duct 60 connected to the suction side, and is sent out to the introduction duct 61 connected to the discharge side. The drying air sent into the introduction duct 61 flows from the outer periphery of the washing tub 2 toward the center, reaches the introduction port 65, and is introduced into the rotary drum 3 through the communication hole 68 and the introduction hole 34.

  The drying air introduced into the rotating drum 3 flows out into the washing tub 2 through the front opening 30 and a number of small holes 32 formed in the peripheral wall, and is introduced into the lower portion of the bottom of the washing tub 2. It is led into the lead-out duct 60 via the outlet 62. The dry air led out to the lead-out duct 60 is sucked into the blower fan 70 through the lead-out pipe 63 and pressurized, and sent out again to the lead-in duct 61.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an ion water nozzle 80 for ejecting ion water as water supply means is attached in the middle of the introduction duct 61. A branch pipe 81 branched in the middle of the cooling water pipe 53 is connected to the ion water nozzle 80. A part of the cooling water flowing through the cooling water pipe 53 is fed into the branch pipe 81.

In the middle of the branch pipe 81, an ion elution device 8 and a check valve 82 are interposed. In the ion elution device 8, a silver counter electrode is disposed in a water reservoir provided in the middle of the branch pipe 81, and a voltage is applied between them, so that silver ions (Ag ⁺ ions) are contained in the retained water in the water reservoir. ) Is a known apparatus configured to elute. The water fed into the branch pipe 81 becomes ionic water containing silver ions by passing through the ion elution device 8, and is ejected from the ionic water nozzle 80 into the introduction duct 61 through the check valve 82. It is introduced into the rotating drum 3 together with the drying air flowing inside.

  In the drying operation of the washing / drying machine configured as described above, the drum motor 4 is driven to rotate the rotating drum 3 repeatedly at a low speed, while the blower fan 70 is driven to operate the heater 72 and the water supply valve. This is done by switching 51 to the second water supply outlet and flowing cooling water over the cooling plate 23.

  As described above, circulation of the drying air is generated inside the drying air passage by driving the blower fan 70. The dry air is heated when passing through the heater 72 and is introduced into the rotary drum 3 through the introduction duct 61. Inside the rotating drum 3, the laundry is repeatedly lifted and dropped according to the rotation of the rotating drum 3. The drying air introduced into the rotating drum 3 hits the laundry in the rotating drum 3, deprives the laundry of moisture, flows out into the washing tub 2 as moist air, and flows into the lower portion of the bottom of the washing tub 2. It flows toward the outlet outlet 62 that opens.

  The dry air flowing in this way is cooled by contact with the cooling water on the cooling plate 23 provided at the lower part of the washing tub 2, reaches the outlet 62 as dry air from which the contained water has been condensed and removed. It is sent out into the duct 60. The condensed and removed water flows backward on the cooling plate 23 together with the cooling water, reaches the rear end portion, flows down into the concave groove 22, and drains into the drain pipe 27 through the water conduit 24 and the filter case 25. Is done.

  The dry air that has become dry air rises in the outlet duct 60, is sucked into the blower fan 70 through the outlet pipe 63, is pressurized, and is reheated by the heater 72 to become a high temperature and low humidity state. 3 is introduced. As described above, the laundry in the rotating drum 3 is dried by repeating contact with the drying air circulating with cooling and heating.

  The ion elution device 8 operates during the drying operation as described above, and feeds water from the branch pipe 81 into ionic water containing silver ions and supplies it into the introduction duct 61 through the ionic water nozzle 80. The ionic water supplied in this way comes into contact with the laundry in the rotating drum 3 and coats the surface of the laundry.

  The silver ions contained in the ionic water have an antibacterial action, and come into contact with the laundry in the rotating drum to decompose and remove molds and germs attached to the laundry. Also, the silver ions that coat the surface of the laundry prevent molds and germs from adhering to them, so that molds and germs generated in the drying air passage are introduced into the rotating drum 3 and the laundry being dried. It can be prevented from adhering to the clothes, and the finished quality of the laundry after drying can be kept good. In addition, the ionic water supplied into the introduction duct 61 can also coat the inner surface of the introduction duct 61 to suppress new generation of molds and various fungi.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the branch pipe 81 connected to the ionic water nozzle 80 has a small diameter, and only a small amount of ionic water is supplied into the introduction duct 61. Therefore, the drying of the laundry is not hindered by the supply of ionic water. The check valve 82 in the middle of the branch pipe 81 is provided to prevent the dry air flowing through the introduction duct 61 from flowing back into the branch pipe 81.

  As shown in the embodiment, when ionic water is supplied in the vicinity of the inlet 65, the silver ions in the ionic water are surely introduced into the rotary drum 3, and the above-described antibacterial action can be exhibited well. effective.

  In the embodiment, the ion water nozzle 80 is provided at one position in the middle of the introduction duct 61. However, a plurality of ion water nozzles 80 are provided, and the ion water ejected from each is dispersed in the introduction duct 61. It can also be supplied. Similar dispersion can be realized by making the ion water nozzle 80 movable and changing the ejection direction.

  Further, in the above embodiment, a part of the cooling water pipe 53 that supplies cooling water for cooling the drying air is used for the generation of ionic water. It can also be provided independently of other water supply systems.

In the above embodiment, ion water containing silver ions (Ag ⁺ ions) is supplied. In the dry air passage, ion water containing metal ions having antibacterial action other than silver ions is used. You may supply water.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, a washing / drying machine in which the washing tub 2 and the rotating drum 3 are supported in a slanting lateral position, that is, a so-called slanted drum type washing / drying machine has been described. Needless to say, the present invention can also be applied to a washing / drying machine in which the rotary drum 3 is supported in a horizontal posture or a vertical posture, and the same effect can be obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Washing tub 3 Rotating drum 60 Outlet duct 61 Inlet duct 62 Outlet 65 Inlet 67 Oil seal 80 Ionized water nozzle (water supply means)
81 Branch pipe (water supply means)
82 Check valve

Claims (2)

A washing tub and a rotating drum that rotates inside the washing tub, and the laundry inside the rotating drum is washed and dehydrated, and is also circulated in a drying air passage and introduced into the rotating drum. In a washing and drying machine configured to dry in contact with wind,
A heater that is disposed inside the drying air path and that heats the drying air;
And a water supply means for supplying water to ion water containing metal ions having antimicrobial properties inside the drying duct,
Water position by the water supply means, downstream of said heater, washing and drying machine according to claim Thea Rukoto set in the vicinity of the inlet for introducing the drying air inside the washing tub and the rotary drum. The washing / drying machine according to claim 1, wherein the water supply means includes a check valve that prevents a backflow of the drying air flowing through the drying air passage.

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