JPH031995B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a method for controlling a washing machine.

(Prior art and its problems) Cloth tangles have been a problem in washing machines for some time, so recently, washing machines have been commercialized that shorten the reversal cycle of the pulsator to create a water flow that reduces cloth tangles. However, from the viewpoint of cleaning performance, the reversal period of the pulsator cannot be extremely shortened, and at present it has not reached the point where cloth tangles can be resolved.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for controlling a washing machine that can improve cloth tangling while maintaining high cleaning performance.

(Method of the Invention) The present invention automatically executes agitation using a main water flow for the purpose of washing, and then automatically performs agitation using a finishing water flow for the purpose of loosening the fabric, which is weaker than the main water flow, and the stirring time for the main water flow is The desired purpose is achieved by increasing or decreasing the stirring time using the finishing water stream depending on the length of the water flow.

(Example) Examples of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described in detail below.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a control circuit of a washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. In Figure 1,
1 is an electronic control circuit, which basically includes an electronic timer 2, an arithmetic processing unit (CPU) 3, a clock control circuit 4, a memory 5, an input buffer control circuit 6, and an out buffer control circuit, as is well known in the art. 7. 8 is a power switch, 9 is a key input unit including a time setting key for setting the washing time (stirring time), a start key, etc., 10 is a motor for rotating the pulsator, and 11 is a display LED.

The CPU 3 reads the state of the key input unit 9 via the input buffer control circuit 6, reads the control program contents from the memory 5, and controls the motor 10,
The display LED 11 and the like are controlled by applying signals from the output buffer control circuit 7 to the switching elements.

Next, the control will be explained with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, after turning on the power switch 8, set the washing time (15 minutes, 10 minutes, or 5 minutes) using the time setting key, and turn on the start key. Then, after determining which washing time has been set, the washing operation is executed by reading out the control program contents corresponding to the washing time.

If the washing time is currently set to 10 minutes, the main water flow operation is executed for 9 minutes from the start of washing, and then the finishing water flow operation is executed for 1 minute. Main water flow operation is 1.4
By driving the motor 10 in left-right reversal with a cycle of ON for 0.6 seconds and OFF for 0.6 seconds, a pulsator generates a so-called main water flow for the purpose of washing, thereby washing the laundry. Finishing water flow operation is ON for 0.8 seconds and OFF for 1.6 seconds.
By driving the motor 10 in left-right reversal at a cycle of , a pulsator generates a finishing main stream that is weaker than the above-mentioned main water stream, and this finishing water stream loosens the laundry and eliminates the tangles of the cloth.

Also, if the washing time is set to 15 minutes, the main water flow will run for the first 13 minutes and 30 seconds, and the remaining 1 minute and 30 seconds.
The finishing water flow operation is executed for each second, and if the setting is 5 minutes, the main water flow operation is executed for the first 4 minutes and 30 seconds, and the finishing water flow operation is executed for the remaining 30 seconds.

Here, the reason why the operating time (stirring time) using the finishing water stream is increased or decreased depending on the length of the operating time (stirring time) using the main water stream as described above will be explained below.

Generally, as shown by line a in FIG. 3, the longer the operating time with the main water flow, the higher the entanglement rate of the cloth. In such a situation, if the operating time using the finishing water stream is made constant, there will be problems in that the entanglement of the fabric cannot be sufficiently cleared within that time, or on the contrary, the operation may be continued longer than necessary. For example, if the running time for the finishing water stream is set to 1 minute regardless of the washing time, if the washing time is 15 minutes, it will not be possible to fully untangle the cloth, and conversely, if the washing time is 5 minutes, it will take about 30 seconds. Even though the cloth can be tangled, it continues to run for one minute, resulting in unnecessary operation. However, as in this example, by increasing or decreasing the operating time for the finishing water flow depending on the length of the operating time for the main water flow, the variation in the entanglement rate due to the length of the operating time can be reduced, as shown by line b in Fig. 3. The entanglement rate is extremely small, and the entanglement rate can be kept extremely low compared to the conventional method (A-line) in which finishing water flow is not performed. Furthermore, as shown by line c in FIG. 4, the degree of cleaning is slightly lower than that of the conventional method (shown by line d) in which no finishing water flow is performed, and a sufficiently high cleaning performance can be maintained.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, but can of course be implemented with appropriate modifications within the scope of the invention.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the control method of the present invention, it is possible to sufficiently eliminate tangles of cloth while maintaining high cleaning performance.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the control circuit of a washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a flowchart, Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between operating time and tangle rate, and Fig. 4 is an illustration showing the relationship between operating time and washing. FIG.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1 The washing process within a set washing time is agitated by periodically repeatedly generating a main water flow for the purpose of washing, which is created by rotating a pulsator in the forward direction, stopping it, and reversing it. The main water flow process is carried out, and the finishing water flow for the purpose of loosening the fabric is periodically repeated, which is a process in which the pulsator rotates forward, pauses, and reverses, and the ratio of forward rotation, reverse rotation, and pause is smaller than the main water flow process. After the main water flow process is performed for a long period of the set washing time from the start of washing, the finishing water flow process is automatically performed for the remaining short period of time. The ratio between the water flow process and the finishing water flow process is
A method for controlling a washing machine, characterized in that the washing time is set so that the longer the washing time is, the longer the time for the main water flow process becomes.