JP5797119B2 - Washing and drying machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a washing / drying machine including a rotating drum that rotates inside a water tank and a drying air passage that circulates drying air in the rotating drum.

  A drum-type washing machine that has been widely used in recent years supports a bottomed cylindrical water tank in an outer casing in a horizontal or oblique horizontal position, and has a bottomed cylindrical shape that rotates coaxially inside the water tank. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

  The water tank and the rotating drum have an opening that opens to the same side. The laundry is put into the inside of the rotating drum through these openings (front opening), immersed in the washing water accumulated in the bottom of the water tank and the rotating drum, repeatedly lifted and dropped by the rotation of the rotating drum, and dropped. Sometimes it is struck by the 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 circulates in the drying air path including the water tank and the rotating drum. The drying air passage is provided with a blower fan for raising dry air, a cooling unit on the upstream side of the blower fan, and a heater on the downstream side. The dry air comes into contact with the laundry in the rotating drum, takes the moisture of the laundry, cools in the cooling unit, becomes dry air from which the contained moisture is condensed and removed, and is heated when passing through the heater. Return to the rotating drum.

  The washing / drying machine described in Patent Literature 1 includes mist injection means for injecting mist water into a rotating drum. Mist spraying is performed even during the drying operation. By applying the sprayed mist to the laundry that has been dried, the dry quality of the laundry is reduced and wrinkles are reduced. It is said that can be prevented.

JP 2009-61057 A

  However, in order to make the mist injection as described above effective, it is necessary to include an appropriate amount of water in the laundry in the rotating drum. However, Patent Document 1 does not describe a specific procedure for the mist injection. For example, excessive moisture is contained in the laundry by mist injection, and conversely, the amount of moisture contained in the laundry is insufficient, and the desired finished quality may not be obtained.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides a laundry dryer that wets laundry in a rotating drum without excess or deficiency by mist injection, and can obtain a good finished state under any conditions. Objective.

A washing and drying machine according to the present invention includes a rotating drum that is loaded with laundry and rotates in a water tank, a drying air passage that circulates drying air in the rotating drum, and a mist injection that injects mist into the rotating drum. A washing / drying machine configured to perform mist injection by the mist injection means during a drying operation in which the laundry in the rotary drum is dried by circulation of the drying air. The drying operation is performed in a state in which the mist injection by the mist injection means is prohibited when the amount of laundry exceeds a predetermined amount by changing the injection amount according to the amount of laundry in the rotating drum. It is characterized by comprising a control means for controlling to execute .

In the present invention, the mist injection means is controlled by the operation of the control means, and an appropriate amount of mist corresponding to the amount of laundry is supplied into the rotating drum to wet the laundry without excess or deficiency. In addition, when there is a large amount of laundry in the rotating drum, there is no sufficient gap between the laundry, and there is a risk that the mist will concentrate on a part of the laundry and get wet. Perform the drying operation in the prohibited state .

  The washing / drying machine according to the present invention is characterized in that the control unit changes the injection amount by changing and controlling one or more of the operation time, the number of operations, and the operation interval of the mist injection unit. And

  In the present invention, the operation of the mist spraying means is controlled in various patterns to ensure that an appropriate spraying amount corresponding to the amount of laundry is realized.

In the washing / drying machine according to the present invention, the control unit changes the start point of the mist injection by the mist injection unit during the drying operation so as to be delayed as the amount of the laundry increases. To do.

In the present invention, since changes the start time of the mist spraying to be slower with increasing number amount of wash濯物, the laundry in the rotary drum, under irrespective substantially constant dryness amount It can be wetted and a good finish is obtained.

In the washing / drying machine according to the present invention, the control means sets the rotation pattern of the rotating drum during the drying operation including the operation period of the mist injection means to the rotation time as the amount of the laundry increases. The total time with the stop time is changed to be longer .

  In the present invention, since the rotation (tumbling) pattern of the rotating drum is changed according to the amount of laundry, the mist is sprayed in a state where the laundry is properly distributed in the rotating drum, and the entire laundry in the rotating drum Can be wetted well, and a good finished state can be obtained.

Further, in the washing / drying machine according to the present invention, the control unit changes the time of the blowing process performed at the end of the drying operation so that the time becomes longer when the elapsed time from the mist injection time by the mist injection unit is short. It is characterized by that.

In the present invention, when the elapsed time from the time of mist injection is short, the time of the blowing process performed at the end of the drying operation is extended, so that wetting of the laundry due to mist injection can be eliminated during the extended blowing process. And a good finished state can be obtained.

  In the laundry dryer according to the present invention, the laundry in the rotating drum can be properly wetted by mist injection, and it becomes possible to dry with good finished quality regardless of the amount of laundry, etc. The present invention has an excellent effect.

It is a perspective view which outlines the appearance of a washing drier. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which briefly shows the internal structure of a washing-drying machine. It is explanatory drawing of the formation aspect of a lead-out duct and an introductory duct. It is an expanded sectional view near the support part of a drum motor. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of a washing / drying machine. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement content of the operation control part at the time of drying operation. It is a chart which shows an example of a driving pattern. It is a chart which shows an example of a mist injection pattern. It is a chart which shows an example of a tumbling pattern. It is explanatory drawing of ventilation operation.

  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.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the washing / drying machine includes a water tank 2 and a rotating drum 3 inside an outer casing 1 constituting an exterior. The water tank 2 is a large-diameter bottomed cylindrical body having an opening 20 on the entire surface on one side, and a plurality of support legs 21 (only one is shown) erected on the bottom surface of the outer casing 1. It is elastically supported while maintaining an inclined posture with the side facing upward and tilting the axis 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 at a position facing the opening 20 of the water tub 2 so as to be opened and closed by a lid 10. The space 20 is sealed liquid-tightly by the bellows 12. As shown in FIG. 1, a door opening button 13 is provided in the vicinity of the lid body 10 on the front surface of the outer casing 1, and the lid body 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 water tank 2, and the bottom surface is fixed to the output shaft 40 of the drum motor 4 fixed at the center of the bottom of the water tank 2, and the opening 30 on one side is formed in the water tank 2. Is supported in a posture facing the inside of the opening 20. The rotating drum 3 supported in this manner rotates on the same axis within the water tank 2 by driving the drum motor 4. A number of water passage holes 32 are formed through the entire surface of the peripheral wall of the rotary drum 3. A plurality of baffles 33 extending in the axial length direction are provided on the inner surface of the peripheral wall of the rotary drum 3 so as to be equally spaced in the circumferential direction. In FIG. 2, only a part of the many water passage holes 32 and one baffle 33 are shown.

  In the washing and 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 loading slot 11, and the lid 10 is After closing, as will be described later, an appropriate amount of washing water is stored in the water tank 2, and the drum motor 4 is driven to rotate the rotating drum 3 in a predetermined pattern (tumbling). The laundry inside the rotary drum 3 is immersed in the wash water inside the rotary drum 3, repeatedly lifted and dropped by the rotation of the rotary drum 3, and is hit against the inner surface of the rotary drum 3 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 8 (see FIG. 2) provided in the lower front portion of the outer casing 1, and a washing operation and a drying operation of a washing / drying machine, which will be described later, and a dehydration operation therebetween are performed. The operation of the operation control unit 8 according to the operation of the operation panel 15 is executed as a series of operations or individually independent operations.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a connection port 50 that can be connected to a water supply source such as water supply is provided on the upper surface of the rear portion of the outer casing 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the connection 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, and switches between a plurality of switching positions including a closed position in accordance with a command from the operation control unit 8.

  A first water supply outlet of the water supply valve 51 is connected to the water supply pipe 52. The water supply pipe 52 extends into an introduction duct 61 that constitutes a dry air passage described later, and is connected to an injection nozzle 7 provided in the introduction duct 61. The injection nozzle 7 is provided at the end of the introduction duct 61 in the vicinity of the introduction port 65 opened as described later in the center of the bottom surface of the rotary drum 3 so as to face the inside of the rotary drum 3 through the introduction port 65. is there.

  The operation control unit 8 switches the water supply valve 51 to the first water supply outlet when supplying the washing water used for the washing operation. By this switching, the water supply from the water supply source reaches the injection nozzle 7 through the water supply pipe 52, is injected from the injection nozzle 7, and is sent into the rotary drum 3 through the introduction port 65. The water supply pipe 52 may be connected to a known detergent case on the downstream side of the water supply valve 51 so that an appropriate amount of detergent stored in the detergent case is fed into the water tank 2 together with water supply.

  The second water supply outlet of the water supply valve 51 is connected to the front lower part of the water tank 2 through the cooling water pipe 53. A concave groove 22 extending in the axial length direction is formed in the lower circumferential surface of the water tank 2, and a cooling plate 23 is installed so as to cover the upper portion of the concave groove 22. The cooling plate 23 is inclined with the rear portion at the bottom, and a plurality of concave portions are arranged in parallel on the upper surface.

  The operation control unit 8 switches the water supply valve 51 to the second water supply outlet during a drying operation described later. By this switching, the water supply from the water supply source is sent to the front upper part of the cooling plate 23 through the cooling water pipe 53 and flows backward along the upper surface of the cooling plate 23 while staying in the plurality of recesses sequentially. As will be described later, this water supply is used as cooling water for cooling the drying air.

  The rear lower part of the concave groove 22 communicates with a drainage pit 24, and the drainage pit 24 is connected to a cylindrical filter case 26 by a bellows-like drainage pipe 25 extending forward. An air trap 24 a is attached to the drain pit 24. The air trap 24a is an air chamber communicating with the inside of the drain pit 24, and a water level sensor 24b is attached to the upper portion of the air trap 24a.

  The filter case 26 is supported on the front lower part of the outer casing 1 in an inclined posture with the front part up, and a lint filter 26 a is accommodated in the filter case 26. The lint filter 26 a is provided to capture foreign matters such as fiber waste mixed in the water flowing in the filter case 26. The lint filter 26 a is detachable from the front end portion of the filter case 26. The attachment / detachment of the lint filter 26a is performed in order to eliminate clogging due to the trapping of foreign matter.

  The rear part of the filter case 26 is connected to a drain hose 28 laid along the bottom surface of the outer casing 1 via a drain valve 27. The middle lower portion of the filter case 26 is connected to the suction side of the circulation pump 29. The circulation pump 29 includes a discharge pipe 29 a extending upward, and the discharge pipe 29 a is connected to the middle of the water supply pipe 52 through a switching valve 54.

  As described above, the washing water fed into the rotating drum 3 flows into the water tank 2 through the water passage holes 32 provided in the peripheral wall of the rotating drum 3. When the drain valve 27 is closed, the washing water enters the filter case 26 through the drain pit 24 and the drain pipe 25 and fills the filter case 26, drain pipe 25 and drain pit 24, and then the water tank 2. Accumulate inside. At this time, air remains in the air trap 24a even after the drain pit 24 is filled with washing water. The air pressure in the air trap 24 a rises according to the level of the washing water accumulated in the water tank 2. The water level sensor 24b is a pressure sensor that detects the air pressure in the air trap 24a. The detection signal of the water level sensor 24b is given to the operation control unit 8, and the operation control unit 8 acquires the water level of the washing water accumulated in the water tank 2 based on the detection signal of the water level sensor 24b.

  The circulation pump 29 is driven continuously or intermittently in accordance with a command from the operation control unit 8 during a washing operation performed as described later after supplying the washing water, and sucks the washing water in the filter case 26. Is pressurized and sent to the discharge pipe 29a. The switching valve 54 performs a switching operation when the circulation pump 29 is driven, and connects the discharge pipe 29 a to the water supply pipe 52. The washing water sent out by the circulation pump 29 reaches the injection nozzle 7 through the discharge pipe 29 a and the water supply pipe 52, is injected from the injection nozzle 7, and is returned to the rotary drum 3 through the introduction port 65.

  In this way, the wash water circulates between the water tank 2 and the rotating drum 3 by driving the circulation pump 29. The circulating washing water passes through the filter case 26, and foreign matters such as fiber waste contained in the circulating water are captured and removed by the lint filter 26a in the filter case 26.

  The drain valve 27 is opened after the washing operation. By this opening, the wash water in the water tank 2 is drained to the drain hose 28 through the drain pipe 25 and the filter case 26. At this time, foreign matters such as fiber waste contained in the washing water are captured and removed by the lint filter 26a in the filter case 26, and are not likely to be discharged to the sewer pipe through the drain hose 28.

  The washing dryer further includes a drying air path for circulating the drying air. The drying air passage has a lead-out duct 60 and an introduction duct 61 that extend along the bottom surface of the water tank 2 and are integrally formed with the water tank 2. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the formation mode of the lead-out duct 60 and the introduction duct 61. This figure shows the state which looked at the bottom face of the water tank 2 from the front, and the upper and lower sides of the 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 water tank 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 lowermost part of the bottom surface of the water tank 2 and is provided so as to rise obliquely upward at one side end. . FIG. 3 also shows the groove 22 formed on the lower peripheral surface of the water tank 2 as described above, and the cooling plate 23 installed above the groove 22. The lower part of the lead-out duct 60 communicates with a lead-out port 62 that opens into the water tank 2 at the rear position of the cooling plate 23. The upper end portion of the lead-out duct 60 communicates with a lead-out pipe 63 that protrudes upward from the upper peripheral surface of the water tank 2.

  The introduction duct 61 includes a circular portion coaxially provided at the center of the bottom surface of the water tank 2 and a linear portion that is continuous with the circular portion and extends 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 water tank 2. On the other hand, the output shaft 40 of the drum motor 4 protrudes at the center of the circular portion, and an introduction port 65 having a circular cross section that opens toward the inside of the water tank 2 is opened so as to be coaxial with the protruding portion. Yes.

  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 drawing, is rotatably supported by a bearing 41 and protrudes toward the inside of the water tank 2, and this protruding end portion is connected to the rotating drum via a connection bracket 42. 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. On the outer periphery of the sealing plate 66, a flange portion is provided around the inner side of the inlet port 65 at the end of the introduction duct 61, and an oil seal 67 fitted and fixed to the inlet port 65 is provided on the outer surface of the flange portion. Are in contact.

  On the bottom surface of the rotating drum 3, a plurality of introduction holes 34 are arranged in parallel on the outer periphery of the fixed portion of the connection bracket 42, 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 6 for raising dry air is disposed on the upper part of the water tank 2. The blower fan 6 is unitized together with a suction-side filter 6 a and a discharge-side heater 6 b, and is fixedly supported inside the outer casing 1. The end of the outlet pipe 63 protruding from the upper part of the water tank 2 is connected to the suction side of the blower fan 6, and the end of the introduction pipe 64 is connected to the discharge side of the blower fan 6.

  When the blower fan 6 is driven, the blower fan 6 sucks and pressurizes the air in the water tank 2 through the lead-out duct 60 and the lead-out pipe 63 and sends it out to the lead-in pipe 64 and the lead-in duct 61 connected to the discharge side. . The air sent into the introduction duct 61 flows from the outer periphery of the water tank 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 air introduced into the rotating drum 3 flows out into the water tank 2 through the water passage holes 32 formed in the peripheral wall, enters the outlet duct 60 through the outlet port 62 formed as described above, and is sent to the blower fan. 6 is sucked again.

  The blower fan 6 and the heater 6b operate according to a command from the operation control unit 8 during the drying operation of the washing / drying machine. Further, during the drying operation, the operation control unit 8 drives the drum motor 4 to repeatedly rotate (tumbling) the rotating drum 3 in a predetermined pattern, and further switches the water supply valve 51 to the second water supply outlet to Operates to flow cooling water through.

  In the drying air passage including the water tank 2 and the rotating drum 3, the air (dry air) is circulated by driving the blower fan 6. This dry air is heated when passing through the heater 6 b and is introduced into the rotating drum 3, comes into contact with the laundry in the rotating drum 3, deprives the laundry of moisture, and flows into the water tank 2. The laundry in the rotating drum 3 is repeatedly lifted and dropped by the rotation of the rotating drum 3 and is in good contact with the drying air introduced into the rotating drum 3.

  The dry air that has flowed out of the water tank 2 flows toward the outlet 62 that opens at the bottom of the bottom of the water tank 2 and is cooled in contact with the cooling water flowing on the cooling plate 23 during this time, and the contained water is condensed and removed. It becomes dry air and is sent out to the outlet 62. The condensed and removed water flows backward together with the cooling water on the cooling plate 23, flows down into the concave groove 22, is collected in the drain pit 24, passes through the drain pipe 25 and the filter case 26, and enters the drain hose 28. Drained.

  On the other hand, the dry air that has become dry air rises in the outlet duct 60, is sucked into the blower fan 6 through the outlet pipe 63, is pressurized, is reheated by the heater 6b, and lowers in the inlet duct 61. It is introduced into the rotary drum 3 through the introduction port 65. As described above, the laundry in the rotating drum 3 is dried by repeating contact with the drying air circulating with cooling and heating.

  As described above, the water supply pipe 52 is extended inside the introduction duct 61 constituting the dry air passage. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the water supply pipe 52 extends downward along the outer surface of the introduction duct 61 from the position of the water supply valve 51, enters the inside of the introduction duct 61 in the middle, and further along the inner surface. It extends downward and is connected to the injection nozzle 7 provided at the lowermost part of the introduction duct 61. As shown in FIG. 4, the injection nozzle 7 is attached with an injection port directed obliquely upward facing the introduction port 65 at the end of the introduction duct 61. The water supply pipe 52 in the introduction duct 61 is embedded in, for example, a concave groove provided on the inner wall surface so that the above-described flow of dry air in the introduction duct 61 is not inhibited.

  With the above configuration, the water supplied from the water supply pipe 52 reaches the injection nozzle 7 connected to the end of the water supply pipe 52, and is misted and injected from the injection port of the injection nozzle 7. The washing water sprayed in this way passes through the introduction port 65 facing the injection port as shown by arrows in FIG. 4, and is further fed into the rotary drum 3 through the communication hole 68 and the introduction hole 34. .

  Such water supply is performed before the start of the washing operation as described above. Washing water used for the washing operation is sprayed from the spray nozzle 7 at the end of the water supply pipe 52, and is fed in a state where the entire interior of the rotary drum 3 is spread through the inlet 65 of the drying air. Pour directly onto the laundry. Accordingly, the laundry in the rotating drum 3 is wetted by the wash water immediately after the start of water supply, and a high cleaning effect and a rinse effect are obtained immediately after the start of the wash operation after the completion of water supply, thereby shortening the time required for the wash operation. Can do.

  Moreover, you may operate the ventilation fan 6 provided in the dry air path, or the ventilation fan 6 and the heater 6b in the case of the supply of the above washing water. This can be realized by giving an operation command to the blower fan 6 or the blower fan 6 and the heater 6b when the water supply valve 51 is switched to the first water supply outlet by the operation of the operation control unit 8 to perform water supply. .

  When the blower fan 6 is operated, the air flow described above is generated in the drying air passage, and is blown into the rotary drum 3 through the inlet 65 at the end of the inlet duct 61. The misted washing water sprayed by the spray nozzle 7 is fed by the air flow so as to spread over the entire inside of the rotating drum 3 and more reliably wets the laundry in the rotating drum 3. be able to.

  When the heater 6b is operated together with the blower fan 6, the warm air heated by the heater 6b blows into the rotating drum 3, and the laundry in the rotating drum 3 is heated by contact with the warm air. As a result, in the washing step, the activity of the detergent component contained in the washing water is increased, and it is possible to improve the removal of dirt. On the contrary, in the rinsing step, dissolution of the detergent components remaining in the laundry can be promoted, and the time required for the washing operation can be shortened.

  The washing operation is performed after the completion of the supply of the washing water as described above. At this time, the operation control unit 8 drives the circulation pump 29 to switch the switching valve 54. Thereby, the circulation of the washing water described above is generated, and this circulating water is fed into the rotary drum 3 from the spray nozzle 7 through the discharge pipe 29a and the water supply pipe 52. Since the injection nozzle 7 faces the inlet 65 of the dry air and mists the water supply and injects it, the circulating water injected from the injection nozzle 7 is fed into the rotating drum 3 in a state of being spread and is being washed Pour onto the laundry in a shower. The washing effect and the rinsing effect can be further enhanced by the circulation of the washing water.

  Further, the mist is jetted by the jet nozzle 7 in a predetermined pattern which will be described later even during the above-described drying operation. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the washing / drying machine. The operation control unit 8 is a computer formed by connecting a central processing unit (CPU) 8a, a read only memory (ROM) 8b, a random access memory (RAM) 8c, and an input / output interface (I / O) 8d via a shared bus. .

  The aforementioned operation panel 15 is connected to the input / output interface 8d. The operation panel 15 is provided with various switches operated by the user, such as a power switch, a start switch for instructing operation start, and a switch for selecting operation contents. The operation panel 15 includes a display unit for performing various displays such as a display for assisting operation and a display of an operation state. The operation content of the operation panel 15 is given to the CPU 8a via the input / output interface 8d. The CPU 8a gives an operation command to the display unit of the operation panel 15 via the input / output interface 8d, and a predetermined value is given to the display unit. Make a display.

  Further, the water level sensor 24b described above is connected to the input / output interface 8d, and the load sensor 16 and the temperature sensor 80 are connected thereto. As shown in FIG. 2, the load sensor 16 is a sensor that is attached to the support leg 21 of the water tank 2 and detects the support load of the support leg 21. The temperature sensor 80 is a sensor that is provided in the vicinity of the drying air outlet 62 and detects the temperature of the drying air fed into the rotary drum 3.

  Detection signals from the water level sensor 24b, the load sensor 16, and the temperature sensor 80 are given to the CPU 8a via the input / output interface 8d. As described above, the CPU 8a obtains the water level of the stored water in the water tank 2 based on the detection signal of the water level sensor 24b, and also the laundry put in the rotating drum 3 based on the detection signal of the load sensor 16. Get the quantity. Further, the CPU 8a uses the detection signal of the temperature sensor 80 for determining the end of the drying operation.

  Further, the input / output interface 8d is connected to the drum motor 4, the water supply valve 51, the drain valve 27, the blower fan 6 and the heater 6b, and more specifically to these drive circuits. The CPU 8a executes a control program stored in the ROM 8b according to the operation content of the operation panel 15, and gives operation commands to the drum motor 4, the water supply valve 51, the drain valve 27, the blower fan 6 and the heater 6b, A drying operation and a dehydrating operation are performed.

  The operation of the operation control unit 8 during the washing operation is as described above. The operation of the operation control unit 8 during the dehydration operation is an operation of rotating the rotating drum 3 at a high speed by driving the drum motor 4 after opening the drain valve 27 to drain the stored water in the water tank 2. The laundry in the rotating drum 3 is rotated by being pressed against the inner surface of the rotating drum 3 by the action of centrifugal force accompanying high-speed rotation, and water contained in the laundry flows through the water passage holes provided in the peripheral wall of the rotating drum 3. It flows out into the water tank 2 through 32, is collected in the drain pit 24, and is drained outside the machine through the drain pipe 25, the filter case 26, and the drain hose 28.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation content of the operation control unit 8 during the drying operation. As described above, the drying operation is performed as an operation continuous with the washing operation and the dehydration operation or as an independent operation. At the start of the drying operation, the CPU 8a of the operation control unit 8 sets an operation pattern (step S1), sets a mist injection pattern and a tumbling pattern (steps S2 and S3), these operation pattern, mist injection pattern and tumbling. A drying operation is executed using the pattern (step S4).

  The setting of the operation pattern is divided into a plurality of processes of the drying operation, and the time of each process is set. FIG. 7 is a chart showing an example of an operation pattern. In this figure, the drying operation is divided into drying, drying 1, drying 2 and blowing processes, and further, the drying 2 process is divided into three processes A, B, and C. The time is set in 10 ways according to the amount of laundry (Y1 to Y14).

  Drying and unraveling is a process performed to loosen the laundry unevenly distributed in the rotary drum 3 in a state of containing moisture after completion of dehydration. This process drives the blower fan 6 and the heater 6b, and the drum motor 4 is driven. Is carried out by tumbling the rotating drum 3 in a pattern to be described later. As shown in FIG. 7, the drying and unwinding time is set to a fixed time (5 minutes) regardless of the amount of laundry.

  The drying 1 is a process of roughly drying the laundry after drying and unwinding until a predetermined dryness is reached. The blower fan 6 and the heater 6b are driven, and the drum 3 is driven in a pattern to be described later by driving the drum motor 4. Is carried out by tumbling. As shown in FIG. 7, the time for drying 1 is set to a fixed time (25 minutes) regardless of the amount of laundry.

  Drying 2 is a finishing process for sufficiently drying the laundry after drying 1. Step A of the drying 2 is a step provided to compensate for the lack of dryness caused by the execution of the drying 1 for a certain time when the amount of laundry is large. The heater 6b is driven, and the drum motor 4 is driven to tumbl the rotating drum 3 in a pattern to be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the process of drying 2A is set to a longer time as the amount of laundry increases when the amount of laundry is 3 kg or more. Note that the amount of laundry is based on the detection signal of the load sensor 16 as described above, more specifically, based on the change in the detection signal of the load sensor 16 before and after the laundry is put into the rotary drum 3. To be acquired. Dry 1. In the drying 2A step, the laundry in the rotary drum 3 is dried by repeatedly contacting the drying air circulating as described above.

  Steps B and C of the drying 2 are steps performed after the drying 1 or the drying 2A is completed. The blower fan 6 and the heater 6b are driven, and the drum motor 4 is driven to tumbl the rotating drum 3, The operation is performed by intermittently switching the water supply valve 51 to the first water supply outlet and intermittently injecting mist from the injection nozzle 7 in a predetermined injection pattern.

  In general, the rotating drum 3 contains a thin laundry such as a shirt and a thick laundry such as a towel. When drying 1 and drying 2A are continuously performed, the laundry is thick. There is a possibility that a good finished state cannot be obtained, for example, the thin laundry becomes overdried before the drying of the product is finished and wrinkles are generated. The spraying of mist in the B and C processes of drying 2 is performed in order to give appropriate moisture to the laundry in the rotating drum 3, in particular, the thin laundry, and to make all the laundry have a good finish. .

  As shown in FIG. 7, the steps of drying 2B and 2C are set to a longer time as the amount of laundry increases. In FIG. 7, the amount of laundry is divided into 14 stages (Y1 to Y14), and drying times 2A, 2B, and 2C are set to 10 stages. However, these stages can be changed as appropriate. it can. Moreover, it is needless to say that the time of each step shown in FIG. 7 is merely an example, and may be a value different from these.

  As shown in FIG. 7, when the amount of laundry exceeds a predetermined amount (6 kg), the steps of drying 2B and 2C are not set, and a sufficiently long time (165 minutes) is set for drying 2A. This is because when there is a large amount of laundry, there is no sufficient gap in the laundry in the rotating drum 3, and the mist sprayed from the spray nozzle 7 concentrates on the laundry near the introduction position and gets wet. This is because the difference in dryness with a distant laundry becomes large and the finished state becomes worse.

  The air blowing step performed after the drying 2 is a step for cooling the laundry that has become hot due to contact with the drying air in the drying step, and this step is performed without operating the heater 6b. And the rotating drum 3 is tumbled by the driving of the drum motor 4. As shown in FIG. 7, the time of the blowing process is set to a fixed time (10 minutes) regardless of the amount of laundry, but this time is set to the state before the transition to the blowing process, as will be described later. Will be changed accordingly.

  The mist injection in each process of drying 2B and 2C is performed according to the mist injection pattern set in step S2. FIG. 8 is a chart showing an example of a mist injection pattern. In the figure, the ON / OFF time is the opening / closing time of the water supply valve 51, the number of times is the number of repetitions of opening / closing in the ON / OFF time, and the interval is the execution interval of the repeating operation.

  In FIG. 8, among the amount of laundry divided into Y1 to Y14 as described above, Y1 to Y12 excluding Y13 and Y14 that do not perform mist injection are divided into three groups, and for each group, ON / OFF time, In step S2, one of the mist injection patterns in FIG. 8 is set based on the amount of laundry, and the mist injection in each step of drying 2B and 2C is set. The mist injection pattern is executed. As a result, more mist is injected into the rotating drum 3 as the amount of laundry increases, and the laundry in the rotating drum 3 can be wetted without excess or deficiency.

  In FIG. 8, the ON / OFF time is constant and the number of times and intervals are different, but the ON / OFF time may be different. In FIG. 8, the amount of laundry is divided into three stages and the mist injection pattern is determined. However, the amount of laundry is divided into two stages or three or more stages, and the mist injection pattern is determined at each stage. May be. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the numerical values of the ON / OFF time, the number of times, and the interval shown in FIG. 8 are merely examples.

  The mist injection pattern as described above is common in each process of drying 2B and 2C, and the tumbling pattern set in S3 is different in drying 2B and 2C. FIG. 9 is a chart showing an example of a tumbling pattern. The rotation in the figure indicates the time for which the rotating drum 3 rotates, and the stop indicates the time for stopping thereafter. Similarly, the rotation speed indicates the rotation speed during rotation, the duration indicates the time for maintaining each rotation speed, and the acceleration indicates the acceleration at the time of transition of the rotation speed. When the tumbling pattern is set according to this figure, the rotating drum 3 repeats the rotation for 30 seconds and the stop for 5 seconds while reversing the rotation direction in each step of drying loosening, drying 1 and blowing. The motor maintains a rotation speed of 65 rpm for 20 seconds and a rotation speed of 95 rpm for 10 seconds. Furthermore, the transition from 0 rpm to 65 rpm is performed at an acceleration of 15 rpm / s, and the transition from 65 rpm to 95 rpm is performed at an acceleration of 50 rpm / s. Such a tumbling pattern can be realized by driving control of the drum motor 4 by the CPU 8a.

  The tumbling pattern shown in FIG. 9 is determined, for example, as a result of an experiment in which various amounts of laundry are put into the rotary drum 3 and the rotary drum 3 is rotated to observe the behavior of the internal laundry. . Since the behavior of the laundry in the rotating drum 3 changes with the change in the weight of the laundry according to the progress of the degree of drying, the laundry of Y1 to Y14 in each of the drying 2A, 2B, and 2C steps The amount is divided into three groups and individually determined for each.

  In step S3, one of the tumbling patterns shown in FIG. 9 is set according to the amount of laundry in the rotary drum 3, and in each step during the drying operation, the rotary drum 3 is tumbled according to the set tumbling pattern. Is done. As a result, the laundry in the rotating drum 3 is reliably brought into contact with the drying air introduced into the rotating drum 3 and the mist injected into the rotating drum 3, and a good finished state is obtained.

  The CPU 8a determines whether or not the drying is finished during the execution of the drying operation (step S5), and when it is determined that the drying is not finished (S5: NO), the drying operation is continued and the drying operation is performed. When it is determined that the process has ended (S5: YES), it is determined whether or not the last mist injection has been performed within a predetermined time from the end determination time (step S6). When the mist injection is not performed within the predetermined time (S6: NO), the CPU 8a performs the normal air blowing operation (step S7), ends the drying operation, and when the mist injection is performed within the predetermined time ( S6: YES), the CPU 8a performs the extended air blowing operation (step S8) and ends the drying operation.

  The determination in step S5 is made based on the detection signal of the temperature sensor 80 as described above. The temperature sensor 80 detects the temperature of the drying air sent into the rotary drum 3. The dry air comes into contact with the laundry in the rotary drum 3 to take away moisture, is heated by the passage of the heater 6b, and is sent into the rotary drum 3. The temperature of the drying air rises as the laundry in the rotary drum 3 is dried and the moisture content in the laundry decreases. The CPU 8a determines that the drying is finished when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 80 exceeds a predetermined value.

  The normal blowing operation is an operation in which blowing is performed for a time according to the operation pattern set in step S1. The air blowing operation is an operation of driving the air blowing fan 6 and the drum motor 4 without operating the heater 6b and circulating low-temperature dry air in the rotating drum 3 that performs the tumbling operation. When the operation pattern is set according to FIG. 7, 10 minutes of air blowing is executed in the normal air blowing operation.

In extension blowing operation, blowing is performed extend the normal blowing operation. The extension time is, for example, 5 minutes. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the air blowing operation. If the determination of the end of the drying is made at the point indicated by the black circles in the figure, the time elapsed since the last mist spraying time is T _1. Also, if the determination of the end of the drying is made at the time indicated by black squares in the figure, the elapsed time since the last mist spraying time is T _2. If T ₂ is longer than Jo Tokoro time, the blowing operation of T ₃ hours is performed. On the other hand, if T ₁ is less than Jo Tokoro time, it is performed blowing operation (T ₃ + ΔT) time. T ₃ is a time (10 minutes) determined by setting the operation pattern, and ΔT is an extended time (5 minutes).

  The extension of the air blowing time as described above is necessary for improving the finished state after the drying. When the mist is sprayed, the laundry in the rotating drum 3 contains a small amount of moisture. This moisture is removed by the drying operation after the mist injection, but if the drying operation time after the injection is short, there is a possibility that the moisture in the laundry is not sufficiently removed. The extension of the air blowing operation is performed in such a case, and the residual moisture of the laundry can be removed by lengthening the air blowing time. The extended time in the extended air blowing operation may be changed to be longer or shorter depending on the elapsed time from the last mist injection time.

  In the above embodiment, the mist injection by the injection nozzle 7 is performed from the center of the bottom surface of the rotating drum 3, but the mist injection position can be any if injection into the rotating drum 3 is possible. It can be set at an appropriate position.

  Moreover, although the above embodiment demonstrated the diagonal drum type washing-drying machine with which the water tank 2 and the rotating drum 3 were supported by the diagonal horizontal attitude | position, this invention is the water tank 2 supported by the horizontal attitude | position or the vertical attitude | position. In addition, the present invention can be applied to a washing / drying machine including the rotating drum 3 and the same effect can be obtained.

2 Water tank 3 Rotating drum 7 Injection nozzle (mist injection means)
8 Operation control unit (control means)

Claims (5)

A rotating drum that is loaded with laundry and rotates in a water tub, a drying air passage that circulates drying air in the rotating drum, and a mist injection means that injects mist into the rotating drum, and circulation of the drying air In the washing / drying machine in which the mist spraying by the mist spraying means is performed during the drying operation of drying the laundry in the rotating drum by:
The mist injection by the mist injection means is performed by changing the injection amount according to the amount of laundry in the rotating drum, and when the amount of the laundry exceeds a predetermined amount, the mist injection by the mist injection means A washing / drying machine comprising control means for performing control so as to execute the drying operation in a state where the drying is prohibited.   The laundry drying according to claim 1, wherein the control means changes the injection amount by changing and controlling one or more of an operation time, an operation frequency, and an operation interval of the mist injection means. Machine. The said control means changes the start time of the mist injection by the said mist injection means during the said drying operation so that it may become late as the quantity of the said laundry increases. Laundry dryer. The control means sets the rotation pattern of the rotary drum during the drying operation including the operation period of the mist injection means so that the total time of the rotation time and the stop time becomes longer as the amount of the laundry increases. washing and drying machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that to change. The said control means changes the time of the ventilation process performed at the end of the said drying operation so that it may become long when the elapsed time from the mist injection time by the said mist injection means is short. Item 5. The washing and drying machine according to any one of Items 4.

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