JP7002292B2 - washing machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a washing machine.

In recent years, the washing capacity of washing machines has been on the rise, but it is difficult for consumers to accept the increase in the size of washing machines under the current situation where the floor area of the house is limited. However, when increasing the washing capacity by increasing the size of the drum, it is necessary to increase the size of the outer tub containing the drum and the fluid balancer, but the gap between the housing and the outer tub is reduced because the size of the housing cannot be increased. .. This increases the possibility that when the outer tank vibrates, the outer tank and the housing interfere with each other and generate abnormal noise. Therefore, in the current situation where the size of the housing cannot be increased, it is difficult to increase the washing capacity by increasing the size of the inner tub. In addition, if the fluid balancer is miniaturized in order to increase the drum volume, the vibration reduction effect is reduced and vibration and noise are increased. Therefore, it is difficult to simply miniaturize the fluid balancer. Therefore, it is desired that the fluid balancer has a high effect of saving space and offsetting imbalance.

Further, in the case of a drum-type washing machine having an input port in the front, a fluid balancer is provided in front of the drum near the input port, and vibration is reduced by canceling the imbalance generated in the front. When the depth of the drum is small, the imbalance generated in the rear can be offset by the fluid balancer provided in the front. However, as the washing capacity increases, the depth of the drum increases, and as the depth increases, the effect of offsetting the imbalance generated in the rear by the fluid balancer provided in the front decreases. In this way, it is necessary to offset the imbalance that occurs not only in the front but also in the rear due to the increase in size, and to reduce the vibration behind the outer tank.

Therefore, in the washing machine described in Patent Document 1, "Since the drum is provided with a plurality of fluid balancers separated in the radial direction, a simple damper configuration is used, and the heavy body is removed from the water tank to reduce the weight of the main body. Furthermore, it is possible to secure the washing capacity in the drum and reduce the dehydration vibration while ensuring the washing performance, rinsing performance and dehydration performance. " Further, in the washing machine described in Patent Document 2, "a drum whose inside is hollow and rotates with respect to the center of the axis, and a drum provided in front of and behind the drum, respectively, complement each other with the eccentric force generated by the drum. It is equipped with a front and rear balancer that balances with. "

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-240488 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-349208

In order to increase the washing capacity, it is necessary to increase the size of the drum. Increasing the size of the drum causes an increase in the exciting force or moment due to imbalance during dehydration. As a result, the vibration of the outer tank during dehydration becomes large, and abnormal noise or noise may occur depending on the unbalanced state. Therefore, in order to achieve both an increase in washing capacity and a low vibration, it is necessary to offset not only the imbalance generated on the front side of the drum but also the imbalance on the rear side of the drum.

In the washing machine described in Patent Document 1, the unbalance canceling effect of the fluid balancer is improved by making the outer diameter of the fluid balancer equal to the inner diameter of the drum. However, since the fluid balancer is placed at a position shifted in the front-rear direction from the bottom plate of the drum, the volume of the drum is reduced by the volume of the fluid balancer, and the washable capacity of the washing machine is reduced. Alternatively, if the volume of the drum is increased by the volume of the fluid balancer, the housing becomes larger by that amount.

On the other hand, in the washing machine described in Patent Document 2, a method of reducing the diameter of the drum flange, which is a reinforcing member of the drum, with respect to the drum and providing a fluid balancer on the outer periphery thereof is described. This makes it possible to suppress a decrease in the drum volume as compared with the case where the drum flange and the fluid balancer are arranged so as to be offset in the front-rear direction. However, since a resin fluid balancer is installed between the metal drum and the drum flange, the rigidity of the drum is reduced.

An object of the present invention is to provide a washing machine capable of increasing the washing capacity, reducing the vibration of the outer tub and the housing, and ensuring the rigidity of the drum by suppressing the installation space of the fluid balancer.

An outer tub for storing water, a drum that is a washing and dehydrating tub rotatably provided in the outer tub, a motor that drives the drum to rotate, and the drum have a radial drum flange that is a reinforcing member on the back surface. However, in a washing machine provided with a front fluid balancer provided in front of the drum and a rear fluid balancer provided behind the drum, the rear fluid balancer has a portion having a different axial depth. The drum flange has a plurality of beams extending radially to the drum body, and has a structure in which a concave portion having a short axial depth of the rear fluid balancer and a radial convex shape of the drum flange are fitted to each other. Are radially fastened to the drum body plate, and are arranged in the order of the front balancer, the rear fluid balancer, the drum bottom plate, and the drum flange from the front side, and the rear fluid balancer is of the drum bottom plate and the drum flange. A washing machine characterized in that it is fastened from the front in the substantially axial direction with respect to at least one of them.

According to the present invention, by providing the fluid balancer between the drum flanges, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the effective volume in the drum due to the provision of the fluid balancer, so that the drum and the outer tank are extended in the axial direction. It is possible to reduce the vibration of the outer tank and the housing.

It is external perspective view of the washing machine which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a right side sectional view which shows the internal structure of the washing machine of this invention. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the drum of the washing machine of this invention. It is a right side sectional view which shows the internal structure of the drum of the washing machine of this invention. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the rear fluid balancer of the washing machine of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which the rear fluid balancer and the drum flange of the washing machine of this invention are assembled. It is a perspective view which shows the rear fluid balancer and the drum flange of the washing machine of this invention. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the drum of the washing machine of this invention. (Example 2) It is a right side sectional view which shows the internal structure of the drum of the washing machine of this invention. (Example 2)

Hereinafter, examples of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<Example 1>
Hereinafter, an example of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 relates to the first embodiment of the present invention and shows an external perspective view of a washer / dryer. On the upper part of the base 1, a housing 2 which is combined with a steel plate and a resin molded product and constitutes an outer shell is placed. The housing 2 is composed of a front panel 2a, a back panel 2b, and left and right side plates 2c and 2d. A door 3 for taking in and taking out laundry is provided at substantially the center of the front surface of the housing 2. An operation / display panel 4 is provided on the front upper part of the housing 2, and is provided with operation buttons such as a power button 4a, a start / pause button 4b, a course selection button 4c, and a display unit such as a remaining time display unit 4d. There is. At the rear of the base 1, take-out ports 1a for taking out the drain hose 9 are provided on the left and right sides, respectively, and the direction in which the drain hose 9 is taken out can be changed according to the installation conditions.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view on the right side so that the internal structure of the drum-type washing machine of this embodiment can be understood. The outer tank 10 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape having a front surface and a back surface, and can be divided into a tank cover 10b having an opening 10a and a water tank 10c having a back surface by a dividing surface 10d. The outer tank 10 has an opening 10a on the front surface connected to the inlet 2e of the housing 2 by a bellows 11 which is an annular packing, and is sealed with water by closing the door 3. A front suspension spring 13 and a rear suspension spring 14 for maintaining the posture of the outer tank 10 are provided on the upper side of the outer tank 10. At the lower part of the outer tank 10, two anti-vibration members 12 are provided to support the mass of the outer tank 10 and the clothes put into the outer tank 10, and they are located at the same place in the front-rear direction in the side view. It is connected to 10. The divided surface 10d of the outer tank 10 is arranged in front of the center of the outer tank 10 in the front-rear direction, and the tank cover 10b can be removed with the vibration isolator member 12 attached to the water tank 10c. .. A vibration sensor 10e for detecting the vibration of the outer tank 10 is provided in the lower front portion of the outer tank 10. At the time of dehydration, the vibration of the outer tank 10 is monitored by the vibration sensor 10e, and when the value exceeds a predetermined value, the rotation of the drum 20 is stopped and the drum 20 is restarted.

A drum 20 which is a washing / dehydrating tank is arranged inside the outer tub 10, and a plurality of lifters 21 for scooping up the laundry are provided inside the drum 20. A drum flange 22 which is a metal reinforcing member for the drum 20 is provided on the back surface of the drum 20 to improve the rigidity of the drum. A front fluid balancer 23 and a rear fluid balancer 24 are provided at the front end and the rear end of the drum 20, respectively, to offset the imbalance caused by the deviation of clothing and reduce the vibration of the outer tank 10. The drum 20 is directly connected to the drive motor 32 of the drum 20 via a shaft 31 connected to the drum flange 22. The drum 20 has a dehydration hole 20c on the side wall, which is a large number of small holes for centrifugal dehydration and ventilation. The drainage port 13 opened in the bottom wall of the outer tank 10 is connected to the drainage hose 9 via the drainage valve 14.

A water supply unit 15 for connecting a water supply hose is provided on the upper portion of the housing 2, and the water supply unit 15 and the detergent case 16 are connected via a pipe 17. Further, the detergent case 16 is connected to the rear of the outer tank 10 via a pipe 18. In this way, the water that has flowed into the water supply unit 15 has a structure that flows into the outer tank 10 via the detergent case 16.

The operation of the above configuration will be described. When the door 3 is opened, the laundry is put into the drum 20, a predetermined amount of detergent is put into the detergent case 16, and then the operation is started, the washing step is first executed. In the washing step, the water supply valve provided in the water supply unit 15 is opened, and the supplied water enters the outer tank 10 together with the detergent through the detergent case 16. After executing this operation for a predetermined time, the drum 20 executes a stirring operation of repeating forward rotation, stop, reverse rotation, and stop for a predetermined time. At this time, the laundry housed in the drum 20 is lifted in the rotational direction by the lifter 21 provided on the inner peripheral wall of the drum 20, and the stirring operation of dropping from the lifted height position is repeated. It is washed by the action of tapping.

After performing this operation for a predetermined time, the washing step is completed and the dehydration step is executed. In this dehydration step, the drain valve 14 is first opened, and the water in the outer tank 10 is drained to the outside of the machine via the drain hose 9. Next, the drum 20 is rotated at high speed (for example, 900 r / min) and rotated for a predetermined time to dehydrate the water contained in the laundry.

After performing this dehydration step for a predetermined time, the water supply valve is opened to supply water, and the water is poured into the outer tank 10 via the pipe 19 connecting the water supply unit 15 and the outer tank 10, and the rinsing step is carried out. To. In this rinsing step, as in the washing step described above, a stirring operation of repeating forward rotation, stop, inversion, and stop operations is executed for a predetermined time. At this time, the laundry is lifted in the rotational direction by the lifter 21 provided on the inner peripheral wall of the drum 20, and the stirring operation of dropping from the lifted height position is repeated, so that the detergent component contained in the laundry is diluted. ， Rinsing is done. After performing the rinsing process, the dehydration process is performed again to end the operation. In the case of a drum-type washer-dryer equipped with a drying function, the drying step is executed after this.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the rotating portion 30 including the drum 20 of this embodiment, and FIG. 4A is a rear view of the drum 20. FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view cut along the AA plane of FIG. 4A so that the internal structure of the rotating portion 30 can be seen. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the rotating portion 30 is assembled from the front in the order of the front fluid balancer 23, the drum body plate 20a, the drum bottom plate 20b, the drum flange 22, and the rear fluid balancer 24. As shown in FIG. 4, the drum flange 22 is fastened to the drum body plate 20a with flange fixing screws 22b from the outside to the inside in the radial direction. Similarly, the front fluid balancer 23 and the rear fluid balancer 24 are also fastened to the drum body plate 20a from the outside to the inside in the radial direction by the front balancer fixing screw 23a and the rear fluid balancer fixing screw 24d, respectively. With the structure of assembling in this order, when replacing the rear fluid balancer 24, after removing the drum 20, only the rear fluid balancer 24 is removed and replaced without removing the drum flange 22 from the drum 20. It becomes possible. Further, the rigidity of the drum 20 is improved by directly fastening the drum flange 22 which is a reinforcing member to the drum body plate 20a.

In fluid balancers such as the front fluid balancer 23 and the rear fluid balancer 24, which are vibration isolation mechanisms, the balancer liquid in the fluid balancer has an unbalanced phase when the drum 20 rotates at a rotation speed higher than the resonance rotation speed. By moving to the position, the imbalance is canceled and the vibration is reduced. Since the effect of canceling this imbalance is proportional to the axial depth of the fluid balancer, a large vibration reduction effect can be obtained by increasing the depth of the front fluid balancer 23 and the rear fluid balancer 24. However, if the depth of the drum 20 is not increased, the larger the depth of the fluid balancer, the smaller the space for the laundry to enter, and the smaller the washing capacity.

FIG. 5 shows an exploded view of the rear fluid balancer 24. The rear fluid balancer 24 is composed of a rear fluid balancer case 24a having a space capable of holding the balancer liquid, a rear fluid balancer lid 24b for sealing the rear fluid balancer case 24a, and a rear fluid balancer baffle 24c. The rear fluid balancer baffle 24c is provided in the rear fluid balancer case 24a, and has a function of scooping up the balancer liquid enclosed in the rear fluid balancer 24 when the drum 20 rotates. Further, when the drum 20 rotates at a high speed and the balancer liquid is attached to the inner wall on the outer peripheral side of the rear fluid balancer case 24a, there is an effect of suppressing the movement of the balancer liquid in the circumferential direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the rear fluid balancer 24 has a recess 24e having a small depth and the depth in the axial direction is not constant. This makes it possible to scoop up the balancer liquid when the drum 20 rotates, similar to the rear fluid balancer baffle 24c.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the rear fluid balancer 24 is installed so that the rear fluid balancer case 24a having the recess 24e is in front of the rear fluid balancer lid 24b. In the rear fluid balancer 24, the balancer liquid can move in the circumferential direction through the flow path provided between the rear fluid balancer case 24a and the rear fluid balancer lid 24b. Generally, in the case of a drum-type washing machine having an opening in the front, the rotation axis of the drum 20 is arranged so as to be horizontal or downward. Therefore, by installing the flow path so as to be located at the rear, that is, at the lower side, it is possible to prevent the balancer liquid from accumulating between the rear fluid balancer baffle 24c when the drum 20 is stopped. be able to.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drum flange 22 and the rear fluid balancer 24 are assembled. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the structure is such that the recess 24e of the rear fluid balancer 24 and the radial beam portion 22a of the drum flange 22 can be fitted. By doing so, while ensuring the axial length of the rear fluid balancer 24 and enhancing the effect of canceling the imbalance, the amount of axial stretching due to the provision of the rear fluid balancer 24 between the drum flanges 22 can be increased. It becomes possible to suppress it.

When the depth of the fluid balancer is about 50 mm, if it is arranged so as to be offset in the axial direction from the drum flange 22, the volume will decrease by that amount, so it is necessary to extend the drum 20 in the axial direction by 50 mm in order to maintain the volume. .. On the other hand, by providing the recess 24e having a depth of about 15 mm as in the present invention and fitting the other portion between the drum flanges 22, the stretching amount of the drum 20 can be reduced to 15 mm.

As described above, the structure of this embodiment suppresses the decrease in the effective volume due to washing and drying, and suppresses the vibration at high speed.

Further, as a method of reducing the stretching amount of the drum 20, it is conceivable to reduce the diameter of the drum flange 22 and provide a fluid balancer on the outer peripheral side thereof. In that case, the drum flange 22 and the fluid balancer 24, the fluid balancer 24 and the drum 20 are considered. It will be fastened in the order of the body plate 20a. On the other hand, in the present invention, the rigidity of the rotating portion 30 can be improved because the metal drum flange 22 and the drum body plate 20a are directly fastened without using the resin fluid balancer 24. ..

In this embodiment, the configuration is described in which fluid balancers are provided at two locations, front and rear, but the front balancer does not necessarily have to be a fluid balancer, and a ball balancer may be used. Further, the structure may be such that only the rear fluid balancer is provided.

Further, the drum flange 22 has a structure in which the beam portions 22a extending radially are six, but it is not always necessary to have six. As shown in FIG. 7, the beam portion 25a may be thinned like the drum flange 25, and the number may be increased in order to obtain rigidity accordingly. By making the beam portion 25a thinner, the recess 26e of the rear fluid balancer 26 can also be made thinner, and the same effect as the rear fluid balancer baffle 22c of the rear fluid balancer 22 can be obtained in the recess 26e, and the rear fluid balancer baffle can be obtained. It is also possible to have a structure in which 22c is not provided.

Although the drum-type washing machine is described in this embodiment, the same applies to the drum-type washer-dryer.

<Example 2>
FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the rotating portion 110 of the present embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of the right side surface so that the internal structure of the rotating portion 110 can be understood. The difference from the first embodiment is the installation method of the rear fluid balancer 114, and the configuration other than the rotating portion 110 including the drum 112 is the same as that of the first embodiment. Omit. As shown in FIG. 8, the rotating portion 110 has a structure in which the front fluid balancer 111, the drum body plate 112a, the rear fluid balancer 114, the drum bottom plate 112b, and the drum flange 113 are assembled in this order from the front. The drum bottom plate 112b has a radial convex portion 112c so that the radial beam portion 113a of the drum flange 113 can be fitted. Further, the rear fluid balancer 114 has a recess 114a so that the radial convex portion 112c provided on the drum bottom plate 112b fits into the rear fluid balancer 114. In this way, by adopting a structure in which the drum flange 113, the drum bottom plate 112b, and the rear fluid balancer 114 are fitted to each other, it is possible to suppress the drum 112 from becoming large in the depth direction.

Next, a method of fixing the drum flange 113, the rear fluid balancer 114, and the front fluid balancer 111 will be described with reference to FIG. The drum flange 113 is fastened to the drum body plate 112a from the outside in the radial direction with a flange fastening screw 113b, and the rigidity of the rotating portion 110 is improved by directly fastening the metal drum flange 113 and the drum body plate 112a. is doing. The rear fluid balancer 114 is fastened to the drum flange 113 via the drum bottom plate 112b by using the rear fluid balancer fastening screw 114b from the front in the axial direction. Like the drum flange 113, the front fluid balancer 111 is fastened to the drum body plate 112a from the outer peripheral side in the radial direction by using the front fluid balancer fastening screw 111b. With this configuration, by removing the tank cover 10b, the front fluid balancer fastening screw 111b becomes visible, and by removing the front fluid balancer fastening screw 111b, the front fluid balancer 111 is taken out forward. Will be possible. Further, with the front fluid balancer 111 removed, the rear fluid balancer fastening screw 114b can be removed from the front drum opening 112c, and the rear fluid balancer 114 can be pulled forward from the drum opening 112c. In this way, since the rear fluid balancer 114 can be removed without removing the drum 112 from the main body, the work when replacing the rear fluid balancer 114 for maintenance becomes easy.

1 Base 2 Housing 10 Outer tank 20 Drum 22 Drum flange 23 Front fluid balancer 24 Rear fluid balancer 24a Rear fluid balancer case 24b Rear fluid balancer Futa 24e Rear fluid balancer recess 113 Drum flange in the second embodiment 114 Second embodiment Back fluid balancer in

Claims (2)

An outer tub for storing water, a drum that is a washing and dehydrating tub rotatably provided in the outer tub, a motor that drives the drum to rotate, and the drum have a radial drum flange that is a reinforcing member on the back surface. In a washing machine provided with a front fluid balancer provided in front of the drum and a rear fluid balancer provided behind the drum.
The rear fluid balancer has a portion having a different axial depth, the drum flange has a plurality of beams extending radially to the drum body, and a recess and a drum flange having a short axial depth of the rear fluid balancer. It is a structure in which the radial convex shapes of are fitted together.
The front fluid balancer is radially fastened to the drum body plate, and the front balancer, the rear fluid balancer, the drum bottom plate, and the drum flange are arranged in this order from the front side, and the rear fluid balancer is the drum bottom plate. A washing machine characterized in that it has a structure in which it is fastened to at least one of the drum flanges from the front in a substantially axial direction .
The washing machine according to claim 1 , wherein when the rear fluid balancer is fastened to at least one of the drum bottom plate and the drum flange, the washing machine is fastened at the recess of the fluid balancer.

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