JPH0329438B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a safety device for a washing machine that can automatically turn off the power and stop operation if abnormal vibration occurs during spinning of a washing and washing tub. .

This type of safety device detects the displacement of the tub when it spins in an unbalanced state due to unbalanced clothing, and turns off the power. The user opens the lid above the spin-drying/washing tub, corrects the unevenness of the clothes in the spin-drying/washing tub, and then closes the lid. In this case, by opening and closing the lid, the safety device must be automatically reset and energized again. Further, during normal dehydration operation, it is necessary to stop the dehydration operation when the lid is opened to ensure safety.

The present invention provides a safety device that requires a relatively plurality of operations as described above, with an extremely simple structure that also has the function of turning on and off electricity by opening and closing the lid. Examples will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an outer frame of the washing machine, and inside thereof, a water tank 4 is suspended and supported in a vibration-proof manner by a plurality of support rods 3 via a cushioning material 2 such as a vibration-proof spring. Inside the water tank 4, a dewatering/washing tub 6 having a pulsator 5 for stirring clothes rotatably disposed at the inner bottom thereof is arranged so as to be rotatable for dewatering. Furthermore, a drive motor 7, a bearing box 8, etc. are fixed to the outer bottom of the water tank 4. A substantially doughnut-shaped aquarium cover 9 is arranged on the upper edge of the aquarium 4, and has functions such as reinforcing the upper edge of the aquarium and preventing water droplets from scattering.

Reference numeral 10 denotes an upper tank section disposed above the outer frame 1, and a lid 1 is provided approximately in the center thereof so as to be freely openable and closable via the shaft support section 11A.
1 is provided. Reference numeral 12 denotes a rear panel section of the upper tank section 10, which includes a time switch (not shown),
Electrical control parts such as a changeover switch 13 and a water supply solenoid valve (not shown) are provided, as well as a safety device 14 according to the present invention.

The safety device 14 has three functions as described above. That is, the first operation is to stop the drive motor 7 when the lid 11 is opened during the dewatering operation. The second problem was that the clothes were extremely uneven in the spin-drying/washing tub 6.
In order to prevent the occurrence of abnormal vibrations caused by dewatering operation in a so-called unbalanced state, the vibration of the water tank 4 or the water tank cover 9 is detected and the drive of the drive motor 7 is stopped. It is an action. Third, when the user opens the lid 11 when the safety device 14 is activated, corrects the unevenness of the clothes in the spin-drying/washing tub 6, and closes the lid 11. , it is an operation to automatically reset again.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the safety device 14 will be explained in detail based on FIG. 2. A retainer 16 made of an insulating material such as a synthetic resin, which is close to the operation protrusion 15 projecting rearward of the lid 11 and is engaged and released when the lid 11 is opened and closed, is crimped to the tip and rotated to the switch board 17. The freely pivoted switch lever 18 rotates around the pivot supporting protrusion 19 of the switch base plate 17 when the locking element 16 is pressed upward by the closing operation of the lid 11. In the figure, it is designed to rotate clockwise.

The switch lever 18 is made of steel wire, and has a coil portion 20 having a rounded shaft portion loosely fitted into the protrusion portion 19 of the switch base plate 17 described above. The switch board 17 is made of thin steel plate,
In FIG. 2, the cross section in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper is formed into a substantially U-shape. A switch 21 connected to the switch lever 18 and the power source of the drive motor 7 is arranged inside the switch board 17.

The switch 21 has fixed contacts 23 on a switch base 22 made of a synthetic resin material having electrical insulation properties.
A fixed side contact piece 24 has a fixed contact piece 24 fixed to its tip, a button 25 whose tip part is made of an electrically insulating material, for example, a synthetic resin material, and a movable contact 2 corresponding to the fixed contact 23.
6 is fixed to the movable side contact piece 26A, which is integrally fixed. By pressing the button 25 upward, the movable contact 26 comes into contact with the fixed contact 23 and becomes electrically conductive, allowing the drive motor 7 to be driven.

In the switch lever 18, the aforementioned retainer 1
A safety lever 27 made of a thin steel plate or the like is engaged near the substantially central portion of the coil portion 20 and the coil portion 20 . This safety lever 27 has two bent parts 28 at its lower part.
It is bent into a substantially L-shape at A and 28B, and the lower end 29 is located outside the upper edge of the aquarium 4 and the aquarium cover 9. The substantially horizontal portion 30 between the bent portions 28A and 28B is slightly inclined and positioned at the upper end periphery of the aquarium cover 9 with a predetermined dimensional interval therebetween.

Further, the safety lever 27 has a substantially vertical portion 31 that is formed by bending the lid 11 side of the switch board 17 downward.
A locking portion 32 whose lower end is further bent toward the lid 11 side.
An opening 33 that can be slid up and down while being attached to the
has.

In addition, the upper end of the safety lever 27 is connected to the switch 2.
A long hole 34A through which the switch lever 18 described above is inserted is formed at the bent portion, and a projecting piece 34B that is pressed by the switch lever 18 is formed at the end. This projecting piece 34B is located below the button 25, and the switch lever 1
8 is pushed up by the operation protrusion 15,
Move the button 25 upward via the protrusion 34B,
The contacts 26 and 23 are brought into contact with each other.

Between the switch board 17 and the safety lever 27,
A compression spring 35 is interposed as a pressing spring material. This compression spring 35 is inserted between a burring hole-shaped projection 36 integrally formed on the bottom surface of the switch board 17 and a locking cylinder portion 37 integrally formed upward on the horizontal portion 30 of the safety lever 27. As a result, the safety lever 27 is biased in the clockwise direction of rotation about the locking portion 32 of the switch board 17, and the switch board 1
It works to press downward against 7.

The upper opening of the switch board 17 is covered with a thin plate-like cover 38 which is fitted and fixed onto a protrusion 39 formed on the side wall of the switch board 17.

The above is an outline of the configuration of the safety device 4, and the operation thereof will be explained below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows a state in which the lid 11 is opened, and the contacts 23 and 26 are separated from each other.

FIG. 3 shows the lid 11 in a closed state. That is,
The operation protrusion 15 on the lid 11 allows the switch lever 1 to be
8 has its retainer 16 pushed upward,
button 2 via the protrusion 34B of the safety lever 27.
5 is pressed upward, and the contacts 23 and 26 are brought into contact with each other by bending and deforming the movable contact piece 26A. At this time, the safety lever 27 is pressed by the protrusion 40 formed on the surface of the substantially vertical portion 31 of the switch board 17 on the lid 11 side, and the opening 33 is pressed against the locking part 32 of the switch board 17. Move by sliding upwards. This movement is caused by the compression spring 35
It is done against the pressure of

FIG. 4 shows a case where the unbalance of the clothes in the spin-drying/washing tub 6 is extremely large and the whirling of the water tub 4 exceeds a predetermined value. When the lower end 29 of the safety lever 27 is pressed by the aquarium cover 9, the safety lever 27 rotates counterclockwise in FIG.
This is done against the pressing force of the compression spring 35. Therefore, the protrusion 34B at the upper end of the safety lever 27
slides on the upper surface of the switch lever 18 and moves to the left in FIG.
The upper end tongue piece 41 provided at the upper part comes off from the lower surface of the button 25, so that the contacts 23 and 26 are separated from each other, thereby functioning as a safety device.

Next, the state shown in FIG. 5 will be explained. The state shown in FIG. 5 shows the state after the operation shown in FIG. 4 has occurred, that is, after the safety device has been activated. The contacts 23 and 26 are separated from each other, and the lid 11 is in a closed state. Safety lever 2
Since the pressing force no longer acts on the lower end 29 of 7, the safety lever 27 is again pressed against the compression spring 3.
With a pressing force of 5, the switch board 17 is rotated back clockwise around the locking part 32 as the center of rotation. At this time, the button 25 has already moved downward, so the upper end tongue piece 41 of the safety lever 27
It falls into a recess 42 formed approximately at the center of the side surface of 5 and fits loosely therein. FIG. 5 shows the state after the safety lever 17 has been rotated as described above.

Next, the operation of resetting the state shown in FIG. 5 to the normal usage state shown in FIG. 2 will be explained.

When the lid 11 is in the open state in FIG. 5, that is, in the state shown by the dotted line, the safety lever 27 slides downward through its opening 33 relative to the locking portion 32 due to the pressing force of the compression spring 35. The upper end tongue piece 41 of the safety lever 27 moves downward, slides on the slope 43 formed on the lower surface of the recess 42 of the button 25, and rotates slightly counterclockwise to move the button 25 downward again. It will be returned to , and will be reset. The reset state is as shown in FIG. 2, and when the lid 11 is closed from the state shown in FIG. 2, the contacts 23 and 26 come into contact again as shown in FIG. 3, allowing operation.

FIG. 6 shows an exploded view of the safety device 14.

Next, the shape and features of the button 25 will be explained in more detail. FIG. 5 shows the state after the safety lever 27 detects abnormal vibration, so the contact 2
3.26 minutes apart. At this time, the user does not necessarily open and close the lid 11 immediately, so this state may continue. That is, in such a case, if the upper end tongue piece 41 of the safety lever 27 presses the button 25, unnecessary load will continue to be applied to the movable side contact piece 26A.

Therefore, the shape of the button 25 has a recess 42 formed in the substantially central part of its side surface, so that the upper end tongue piece 41 of the safety lever 27 is loosely fitted inside this recess 42. Therefore, the upper end tongue piece 41 is connected to the movable contact piece 26A.
It is not pressed to the side, and the mechanism of the switch 21 is not adversely affected.

Further, even when the lid 11 is opened, the upper end tongue piece 41 is attached to the inclined surface 43 formed on the bottom surface of the recess 42.
The movable side contact piece 26A is not particularly subjected to a large load.

As described above, according to the present invention, by improving the shape of the button provided on the movable contact piece of the switch, the switch can be opened and closed without applying unnecessary force to the movable side piece. Moreover, the durability of the switch can be significantly improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a general dehydrating and washing machine.
Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the safety device according to the embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 3 is a sectional view for explaining the operation of the safety device when the lid is closed, and Fig. 4 is the operation when unbalance of clothing is detected. 5 is a sectional view showing the reset state, and FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the safety device. 1... Outer frame, 4... Water tank, 6... Dehydration/washing tub, 7... Drive motor, 11... Lid, 15...
Operation projection, 17...Switch board, 18...Switch lever, 21...Switch, 25...Button, 26A...Movable side contact, 27...Safety lever, 35...Compression spring (spring material), 41...
... Upper end tongue piece, 42 ... Recessed portion, 43 ... Inclined surface.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A water tank supported in a hanging vibration-proof manner within an outer frame, with a dewatering/washing tub rotatably arranged inside, a lid with an upper opening that can be opened and closed, and a drive unit linked to the opening and closing of this lid. A switch that turns on and off the power to the motor, a switch board to which the switch is attached, a switch lever that is rotatably supported on the switch board and rotates in conjunction with opening and closing of the lid, and the operation of the switch lever. a safety lever that is displaced by the switch to operate the movable side contact piece of the switch; and a spring material interposed between the switch board and the safety lever, and the safety lever is moved up and down and rotated relative to the switch board. The switch is freely pivoted, its upper end is bent, and the switch is positioned near a button made of an electrically insulating material arranged at the end of the movable contact piece of the switch. The upper end of the safety lever has a recess into which it can be fitted loosely, and the recess has a sloped bottom surface, and the safety lever, which moves up and down in conjunction with the rotation of the switch lever by opening and closing the lid, is connected to the lower surface of the button. 2. A safety device for a washing and dehydrating machine, which presses and releases the pressure, and is configured such that an upper end portion of the safety lever loosely fits into the recess due to rotation of the safety lever.