JPH02136186A - Steam and dry iron - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To perform the only change-over operation of a switch on change-over operation itself and reduce bearing for a user by changing the change-over of three steps of steam, power shot and dry, to electrical change-over by the use of a push type solenoid. CONSTITUTION:When by pushing a plunger downward with the attracting force of a push type solenoid, a water channel opening or closing ball in a water channel opening or closing device is pushed against a lower feed water slot with the tip of the plunger in a pump chamber, then a water channel is released. When the plunger is retained on the upper side by an energizing spring, then the water channel is composed to be closed with an energizing force due to the ball energizing spring. Then, the change-over operation of steam, power shot, and dry is changed to electrical change-over operation for using the push type solenoid, from the change-over due to conventional man power, and the opening or closing operation of a water course using bi-metal can be also performed, and so the title iron can be simplified, and its usage can be improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a steam iron with a power shot mechanism for general household use.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, this type of steam iron has generally had the structure shown in FIG. 3, and this structure will be explained below.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a base of the iron, in which a heater 2 is embedded, a vaporizing chamber 3 for instantly evaporating water, and a blowhole 4 for ejecting steam are provided. Reference numeral 5 denotes a water tank, which can be attached to and detached from the main body 6. A faucet 7 is provided at the bottom of the water tank 5, and is configured to be pushed up when the water tank 5 is attached to the main body 6, allowing the water inside to flow out.

Reference numeral 8 denotes a water guiding case, which communicates between the faucet 7 and the nozzle 9 provided at the top of the vaporizing chamber 3, and guides the water in the water tank 5 to the vaporizing chamber 3 in the base 1 (it serves as a water flow path). ing.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a bimetallic waterway switch installed in a part of the water guide case 8. When the heater 2 starts to be energized and the temperature of the bimetal 11 mounted on the base 1 rises, the axis moves upward due to the reversal action caused by this. The structure is such that it is pushed up and the water flow path is opened. 12 is the waterway opening/closing ball,
During steam operation, it is in the state shown in the figure and can freely move in the space created between it and the upper ball biasing spring 13. 14 is a pump shaft for pumping water, and is linked to a steam button 15 attached to the top.

The operation of the above configuration will be explained. When the base 1 is heated by energizing the heater 2 and reaches a predetermined temperature or higher, the bimetal 11 is reversed and the bimetal waterway switch 1
0 is released. At this time, when the steam button 15 is in state B (steam state) as shown in FIG. The water flows into the water guide case 8, pushes up the waterway opening/closing ball 12, and opens the bimetallic waterway switch 10.
The water passes through the opening and drips into the vaporization chamber 3 through the nozzle 9 in the form of water droplets. The dropped water is instantaneously evaporated in the vaporization chamber 3 and is ejected from the fumarole 4 as steam. Also, if the steam button 15 is pressed in this state,
The waterway opening/closing ball 12 is pressed downward by the ball biasing spring 13, and water that has accumulated between the waterway opening/closing ball 12 and the nozzle 9 is pumped by the pumping action of the pump shaft 14, even though water supply from the water tank 5 is cut off. A larger amount of water than usual flows into the vaporization chamber 3 all at once as it is pushed out from the nozzle 9, resulting in explosive evaporation and more powerful steam than usual is ejected from the fumarole 4. This is a power shot.

Further, when the steam button 15 is pushed all the way down and latched by a latch mechanism (not shown), the waterway opening/closing ball 12 remains pressed downward by the ball biasing spring 13, and the water supply from the water tank 5 is completely stopped. This creates a situation in which no steam is generated. This state is the dry state.

In this way, conventional steam irons can create three states: steam, power shot, and dry.When the temperature of the base 1 further decreases and water evaporation in the vaporization chamber 3 becomes difficult, the bimetal 11 The bimetallic waterway switch 10 is operated by this action to close the flow channel and prevent water from flowing into the vaporization chamber 3.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention With such a conventional configuration, in order to switch between the three states of steam, power shot, and dry, the user must press the steam button deeply with his or her finger each time. When generating a power shot, it is necessary to push it in forcefully to increase the pump effect, and since only one power shot can be generated with a -degree push operation, it must be repeated many times like normal usage conditions. When using a power shot, the steam button must be pressed many times each time, requiring considerable finger strength. In other words, it was extremely difficult and difficult to use, requiring heavy labor for powerless housewives.

Furthermore, the bimetal used to open and close the waterway to prevent water leakage at low temperatures has to be structurally attached to the top of the base, which makes the base (R) structure complicated, and the bimetal There is considerable variation in the reversing operating temperature, and the opening/closing mechanism has to be set to operate at a fairly high temperature due to the design.This can cause problems such as steam not coming out even though the steam temperature is still high enough. There was a problem.

The present invention solves these problems, and
The switching operation between Power Shot and Dry has been changed from the conventional manual switching operation to an electrical switching operation using a bush-type solenoid, and it also doubles as the opening/closing operation of the flow channel using a bimetal, making it simple and easy to use. It provides a good steam iron.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve this problem, the present invention provides a base with a built-in heater and a vaporization chamber, a water tank removably provided on the top of the base, and the water tank. A water guide case that forms a waterway from a faucet provided at the bottom of the tank to a nozzle provided at the top of the vaporization chamber, two sets of waterway switches provided in the middle of this water guide case, and engaged with the waterway switches. The first pump includes a piston-shaped pump chamber consisting of a cylinder and a plunger, a bush-type solenoid for pushing down the plunger of the pump chamber, and a biasing spring for pushing up the plunger. The base part of the second waterway switch is approximately pipe-shaped, and the upper part engages with the pump water supply hole and has a waterway opening/closing ball that can move freely inside. The base part engages with the nozzle, and the upper part engages with the pump drain hole, and has a substantially pipe shape with a waterway opening/closing ball internally biased at the top by a ball biasing spring. When the plunger is pushed down by the suction force, the waterway opening/closing ball inside the second waterway switch is pressed against the lower water supply hole by the tip of the plunger in the pump chamber, and the waterway is opened and energized. When the spring holds the bread layer upward, the waterway is closed by the biasing force of the ball biasing spring.

Function: With this configuration, the three-stage switching of steam, power shot, and dry is changed to electrical switching using a bush type solenoid, so the switching operation itself is just a simple switching operation of a switch (for example, a touch switch, etc.). This greatly reduces the burden on the user, the housewife, and once the power shot is set, it can be automatically generated over and over again every few seconds. Furthermore, by having a structure that also opens and closes the flow channel to prevent water leakage, there is no need to handle bimetallic devices with large variations in base temperature detection, and a highly accurate thermistor can be used to generate steam. This makes it possible to expand the range of possible temperature conditions.

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. In FIG. 1, 16 is the first waterway switch,
A water faucet 17 is engaged at the base, and a pump water supply hole 18 is engaged at the top, respectively, and has a substantially pipe shape with a waterway opening/closing ball 19a. Reference numeral 20 designates a second waterway opening/closing device, which has a substantially pipe shape with a nozzle 21 at its base, a pump drainage hole 22 at its upper part, and a waterway opening/closing ball 19b. Further, the waterway opening/closing ball 19b is urged upward by a ball urging spring 23.

A pump chamber 24 is provided in engagement with the first waterway switch 16 and the second waterway switch 20, and is provided with a plunger 25 that slides up and down on a cylindrical inner surface. Reference numeral 26 is a bush type solenoid that operates the plunger 25, and can hold the plunger 24 in a downwardly pulled state by suction force. 27 is a biasing spring that pushes up the plunger 24 that has been released; 28;
is a gasket for sealing the pump chamber.

The operation when realizing the three states of steam, power shot, and dry using the above configuration will be explained.

That is, drying is realized in the state shown in FIG. 2(a). That is, by de-energizing the bush type solenoid 26, the plunger 25 is pushed upward by the force of the ball biasing spring 23, and the waterway opening/closing ball 19b
is pressed against the pump drain hole 22. The waterway is thus completely blocked.

Next, the state of the steam is shown in FIG. 2(b), and the bush type solenoid 26 is in an adsorption state, in other words, in a state where it is held after suction, and as shown in the figure, the first waterway opening/closing ball 19a is in a state where it can move freely, and the second waterway opening/closing ball 19b is pulled down by the plunger 25 to open the waterway. Therefore, water passes through the faucet 17 due to the water pressure of the water tank 5, and flows through the waterway opening/closing ball 1.
Push up 9a to open the pump water supply hole 18 and pump drain hole 22.
, passes through the second waterway switch 20, is squeezed by the nozzle 21, and drips into the vaporization chamber 3 little by little.

As a result, normal steam is ejected from the fumarole 4.

Finally, the power shot is shown in Figures 2(a) to 2(b).
) is realized in the process of transitioning to

That is, by passing current through the bush-type solenoid 26 in the non-energized state (FIG. 2(a)), the plunger 25
is pushed downward all at once and shifts to the state shown in FIG. 2(b). At this time, since the pump chamber 24 is sealed by the gasket 28, the body inside the pump chamber 19 is rapidly compressed as the plunger 25 descends, and this action causes water in the pump chamber 24 to drain into the pump drain hole 22. and nozzle 2
1 into the vaporization chamber 3. As a result, explosive evaporation occurs in the vaporization chamber 3, and powerful steam is vigorously ejected from the fumarole hole 4, achieving a power shot state.

At this time, the waterway opening/closing ball 19a in the first waterway switch 16 is pressed against the base to prevent water from flowing backward.

The sound and vibration when the bush type solenoid is attracted are reduced by the damper effect of the pump chamber 24, packing 28, and nozzle 21. Also, the slight sound produced is muffled by the sound of steam generation.

Furthermore, when the temperature of the base l drops and steam cannot be generated, this is detected by a separately provided thermistor (not shown), and the bush type solenoid 26 is de-energized to force the above-mentioned All you have to do is create a dry state.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, the opening/closing of the waterway and the pumping effect are achieved by suction and holding (
By realizing this through non-energized operation, users (mainly housewives) do not have to put pressure on the button with their fingertips, unlike in the past.・It is now possible to switch between three states: Power Shot and Dry, and it is also possible to use Power Shot repeatedly, making it possible to provide a steam iron that is extremely easy to use. In addition, the operating sound of the solenoid is quiet, and in terms of preventing water leakage, there is no need to use conventional bimetals, the structure is simple, which has great advantages in terms of manufacturing, and the temperature at which steam can be generated can be accurately determined. This makes it extremely practical.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a steam iron according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of a waterway switch portion thereof, and FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a conventional steam iron. l...base, 2...heater, 3...vaporization chamber, 5
...Water tank, 8...Water guide case, 16...1st
Waterway switch, 17... Faucet, 18... Pump water supply hole, 19a/19b... Waterway opening/closing ball, 20...
2nd waterway switch, 21... Nozzle, 22... Pump drain hole, 23... Ball biasing spring, 24... Pump chamber, 25... Plunger, 26... Bush type Solenoid, 27... energizing spring, 28... seal. Name of agent: Patent attorney Shigetaka Awano 1 idiot →
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Claims (1)

[Claims] A base with a built-in heater and a vaporization chamber, a water tank removably provided on the top of the base, and a water channel from a faucet provided at the bottom of the water tank to a nozzle provided on the top of the vaporization chamber. a water guide case, two sets of waterway switches installed in the middle of the water channel switch, a piston-shaped pump chamber consisting of a cylinder and a plunger that are provided to engage with the waterway switches, and this pump chamber. a bush-type solenoid for pushing down the plunger, and a biasing spring for pushing up the plunger; The second waterway switch has a substantially pipe shape having a waterway opening/closing ball that can be engaged with each other and freely move inside, and the base part of the second waterway switch is engaged with the nozzle, and the upper part is engaged with the pump drain hole. It has a substantially pipe shape with a waterway opening/closing ball inside which is biased upward by a ball biasing spring, and when the plunger is pushed down by the suction force of the bush type solenoid, the inside of the second waterway switch is When the waterway opening/closing ball is pressed against the lower water supply hole by the tip of the plunger of the pump chamber, the waterway is opened, and when the plunger is held upward by the biasing spring, the biasing force of the ball biasing spring opens the waterway. , a steam iron with a structure in which the waterway is closed.