JPH0435198B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention provides a container that is installed in the inner lower part of a tank body that is stopped during washing and rotated during dehydration, and that is rotated forward and backward during washing and rotated integrally with the tank body during dehydration. The present invention relates to a dehydrating and washing machine equipped with an agitator.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

In conventional washing machines that also serve as a dehydrator, a rotating blade is provided at the inner bottom of a washing tank that also serves as a dehydrating tank, and the rotating blade generates a water flow to obtain a cleaning action. Since this rotary vane system essentially uses water to flow the laundry, it requires a large washing tank volume relative to the amount of laundry, which means that only a small amount of laundry can be washed at one time. Furthermore, when the amount of cloth is small, the water flow becomes extremely strong, resulting in excessive cleaning, while when the amount of cloth increases, the water flow rate decreases and the cleaning effect tends to decrease rapidly. Furthermore, since the laundry and the rotating blade come into contact only incidentally and only partially, it is not possible to expect a scrubbing effect over the entire laundry, and on the contrary, the laundry may be partially damaged.

On the other hand, a new method has recently been developed in which the rotating blades have been removed, in which the entire washing tank is intermittently rotated while containing water and laundry, and the cleaning effect is obtained by the speed difference between the water and the laundry. Although this method has the advantage of not damaging the laundry, it has the disadvantage that the speed difference between the laundry and water is small and the movement is simple, resulting in low cleaning effectiveness. .

[Purpose of the invention]

Therefore, the purpose of the present invention is to make it possible to expect better cleaning effects and prevention of fabric damage than before without using the conventional rotary blades or the rotation of the entire washing tank, and also to be able to wash a large amount at one time and maintain an appropriate cleaning effect. To provide a dehydrating and washing machine which can widen the range of clothes weight.

[Summary of the Invention] The present invention provides a container-shaped agitator that is rotated forward and backward during washing and rotates integrally with the tank during dehydration, at the inner lower part of the tank that is stopped during washing and rotated during dehydration. Laundry is housed in the tub together with water so that the laundry is made to flow mainly due to the contact frictional force with the container-shaped stirring body, and synergistic with the contact frictional force received from the upper peripheral wall of the tubular body. This causes the washing to be washed by the friction between the laundry and the upper circumferential wall of the tub and the container-shaped agitator, and the scrubbing effect due to the friction between the laundry and the washing between the upper circumferential wall of the tub and the container. It is possible to expect a so-called scrubbing effect due to the force being applied in a different direction from the agitator, and in addition, the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tank body is aligned with the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitator. The upper peripheral wall is formed substantially on the same plane, and a grooved portion is provided at a portion of the inner peripheral surface of the upper peripheral wall corresponding to the upper end of the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring body to create a space between the upper peripheral wall of the tank body and the upper end of the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring member. By forming a gap between the grooves and positioning the lower surface of the groove at approximately the same height as the upper end of the container-shaped agitator, the washing machine is pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the tub by centrifugal force, especially during spin-drying. This prevents material from getting caught between the tank body and the container-shaped stirring body, causing damage to the cloth or breakage of the cloth.

[Embodiments of the invention]

1 to 3 below regarding one embodiment of the present invention.
This will be explained with reference to the figures.

First, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an outer box, inside of which a water receiving tank 2 is disposed, which is elastically supported via a hanging rod mechanism 3 so as to be swingable. 4 is a washing tank which also serves as a dehydration tank, which consists of a plastic tank body 5 that is stopped during washing and rotated during dehydration, and a plastic tank body 5 that is rotated forward and backward during washing and rotated integrally with the tank body 5 during dehydration. Shallow container-shaped stirring body 6
It consists of. To explain this in detail below, the tank body 5 is placed in the water receiving tank 2, its outer bottom is connected to a hollow dehydration shaft 7, and the container-shaped stirring body 6
is placed in the inner lower part of the tank body 5, and its outer bottom is connected to the washing shaft 8.
is connected to. At this time, the height of the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring body 6 is approximately half the height of the tank body 5, that is, the depth, and the diameter is set within a range that allows rotation within the tank body 5.
Further, the tank body 5 has a lower diameter portion 9a with a border at approximately the same height as the upper end of the container-shaped agitator 6.
It is composed of a tank body 9 having a large-diameter portion 9b at the upper portion, and a cylindrical wall body 10 fitted and fixed inside the large-diameter portion 9b of the tank body 9. In this case, the cylindrical wall body 10 has a balancer 11 integrally formed at its upper end,
The balancer 11 is configured to hang continuously from the inner circumferential surface, and the inner diameter of the cylindrical wall 10 is approximately equal to the protrusion of the ribs 10a protruding from the outer circumferential surface of the large diameter portion 9b of the tank body 9. By setting the diameter to be smaller, the large-diameter portion 9b of the tank body 9, which is the upper peripheral wall of the tank body 5, and the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical wall 10, which constitutes the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical wall 10, can be used for container-like agitation. It is arranged to be substantially flush with the inner peripheral surface of the body 6. Then, the lower end of the cylindrical wall body 10 is moved upward from the upper end of the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring body 6, for example.
They are positioned 10 mm to 15 mm apart, and a flange 10b that contacts the large diameter portion 9b of the tank body 9 is formed at the lower end to protrude outward. As a result, the flange 10b and the small diameter portion 9 of the tank body 9 are attached to a portion of the inner peripheral surface of the upper peripheral wall of the tank body 5 that corresponds to the upper end of the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring body 6.
a and the stepped surface 12 existing between the large-diameter portion 9b form an annular grooved portion 13, thereby creating a gap 1 between the upper circumferential wall of the tank body 5 and the upper end of the circumferential wall of the container-shaped stirring body 6.
4, and the step surface 12, which is the lower step surface of the grooved portion 13, is positioned at approximately the same height as the upper end of the container-shaped stirring body 6. Dehydration holes 15 and 16 are formed in the tank bodies 9 and 10, respectively.
Reference numeral 17 denotes a power control mechanism, which controls the rotational force of the washing machine motor 18 to be slowed down and alternately reversed to the washing shaft 8 during washing, and to the spindle shaft 7 during spin-drying.
In addition to the washing shaft 8, a deceleration mechanism, a clutch mechanism, a brake mechanism, etc. are incorporated in order to rotate the tank body 5 integrally with the container-shaped stirring body 6. Reference numeral 19 denotes a drain valve that allows water in the washing tank 4 to be discharged from the bottom of the water receiving tank 2 to the outside of the machine via a drain hose 20. 21 is a timer, which automatically controls each process from washing to final dehydration.

In the above configuration, during the washing operation, the tank body 5 is restrained by the brake mechanism so as not to rotate, and the container-shaped agitator 6 is rotated in forward and reverse directions. The cylindrical wall body 10 of the upper barrier is made to function as a fixed peripheral wall part of the peripheral wall of the washing tank 4, and the peripheral wall of the container-shaped stirring body 6 is made to function as a movable peripheral wall part.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be explained. At the time of washing, approximately the same amount of water as in a conventional rotary blade type washing machine is supplied into the water receiving tank 2 and thus into the washing tank 4, and the laundry is thrown in. The washing operation is performed by driving only the container-shaped agitator 6 in forward and reverse rotation while the tank body 5 is restrained by a brake mechanism so as not to rotate. In this embodiment, the rotation speed of the container-shaped stirring body 6 is within the range of 120 to 180 revolutions per minute, and approximately 2 to 180 revolutions per minute.
The direction of rotation is reversed every three rotations.

Now, in such a washing operation, since the laundry comes into contact with the peripheral wall of the container-shaped agitator 6 and the cylindrical wall 10 of the tub 5, there is frictional contact between the container-shaped agitator 6 and the lower part of the laundry. The upper part receives a restraining force due to frictional contact with the peripheral wall of the tub body 5, and by simultaneously receiving these frictional forces in different directions, it gives a twisting or compressing effect to the laundry, and this also causes the container-shaped agitator to 6 is repeatedly reversed, and the centrifugal force accompanying the rotation of the container-shaped agitator 6 pushes the laundry toward the peripheral wall of the container-shaped agitator 6, and the reaction is applied to the cylindrical wall of the upper tub 5. By receiving it inward from the body 10, it also produces an effect of being reversed up and down, giving it a complex movement. Therefore, when washing laundry, there is a large amount of friction between the cloths due to such complicated movements, as well as a problem with the tub body 5.
While being subjected to a scrubbing action due to large friction between the cylindrical wall body 10 and the peripheral wall of the container-shaped agitator 6,
It is also washed by a kind of massaging action caused by repeated twisting and pressure, and the cleaning effect is as shown in Figure 2 as an example of the results of a comparative experiment.
That is, in FIG. 2, curve A is according to the present invention, curve B is according to the conventional rotary vane system, and curve C is
shows the cleaning ratio characteristics in the case of the washing tank rotation system devised prior to the present invention, and it can be seen that the cleaning effect of the present invention is excellent.

In this method of cleaning by contacting the upper circumferential wall of the tub 5 in which the laundry is stationary and the circumferential wall of the container-shaped agitator 6, the present invention provides a method in which the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tub 5 is cleaned. (In this example, the cylindrical wall body 1
0) and the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped stirring body 6 are made substantially flush with each other, so that the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tank body 5 has a larger diameter than the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped stirring body 6 and is directed toward the tank body 5 side. Unlike the case where it is predicted that the laundry will have poor contact, the laundry comes into good contact with both the upper circumferential wall of the tub 5 and the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitator 6. The cleaning effect can be maintained.

Furthermore, as mentioned above, the laundry is carried out in the tub body 5, the cylindrical wall body 10.
Since it is moved by frictional contact with the peripheral wall of the container-shaped agitator 6, as the amount of cloth increases, the frictional force also increases, so that the degree of movement of the laundry decreases little due to an increase in the amount of cloth, and therefore the rate of decrease in the cleaning effect is small. . Moreover, when the amount of laundry is small, the frequency of contact between the container-shaped agitator 6 and the surrounding wall is low, and the contact friction force is extremely small. Since the water flow is generated almost entirely over the entire area and the water is washed, the water flow does not become extremely strong as in the conventional rotating blade method, so there is no over-washing and an appropriate degree of washing is achieved regardless of the amount of cloth used. can be secured. These facts mean that the range of cloth amounts that can maintain an appropriate cleaning effect is wider than in the case of the prior art described above. (See Figure 2).

On the other hand, in the dewatering operation, after draining water by opening the drain valve 19, a clutch mechanism (not shown) or the like is activated to remove water from the tank body 5.
This is carried out by rotating the container-shaped stirring body 6 integrally, that is, the entire washing tank 4, which also serves as a dehydration tank, at high speed in one direction. In this case, if thin articles such as socks and underwear are present in the laundry, as shown in FIG. The laundry D is moved by the cylindrical wall 10 of the tub 5 and the container-shaped agitator 6 due to centrifugal force or vibration accompanying the rotation of the washing tub 4.
is strongly pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the concave portion 13.
The tank body 9 is pushed inward and becomes the inner surface of the grooved portion 13.
It is strongly pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the large diameter portion 9b, and spreads in the vertical and horizontal directions along the inner circumferential surface of the large diameter portion 9b, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. At this time, assuming that the step surface 12 as in the present embodiment is not provided, the portion of the laundry D that is pushed into the grooved portion 13 and spreads vertically and horizontally, which spreads downward, is the inner circumferential surface of the tub body 9. along the container-shaped stirring body 6.
It gets into the small gap between it and the outer circumferential surface.
If such a phenomenon occurs during the dehydration operation performed after detergent washing, there will be a problem that the laundry D will be strongly rubbed and torn by the rotation of the container-shaped agitator 6 in the next rinsing operation, and the laundry D will be damaged. If this occurs during the dehydration operation performed after washing, when taking out the laundry D after dehydration, it must be pulled out from between the tub body 9 and the container-shaped agitator 6.
This results in the user having doubts about the performance of the washing machine itself.

However, according to this embodiment, since the tank body 9 is provided with an upwardly facing stepped surface 12 at a position approximately at the same height as the upper end of the container-shaped agitator 6, the washing that is pushed into the concave portion 13 is removed. Even if the object D is strongly pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the large-diameter portion 9b of the tank body 9 and spreads vertically and horizontally, the portion that tends to spread downwards will end up on the step surface as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 12, the laundry D is prevented from spreading further downward, thereby preventing the laundry D from entering the gap between the inner circumferential surface of the tub body 9 and the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitator 6. . Incidentally, the tendency for the laundry to push into the concave portion 13 and spread along the inner peripheral surface of the large-diameter portion 9b is due to the centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the container-shaped agitator 6 when washing the laundry. This can also occur when the laundry is pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the tub 5, but in this case as well, the stepped surface 12 causes the laundry to move between the inner circumferential surface of the tub 5 and the container-shaped agitator 6. Entry into the gap is prevented.

Note that the step surface 12 is not limited to the horizontally upward surface, but may be diagonally upwardly.
3 is not limited to an annular shape that continuously goes around the inner peripheral surface of the tank body 5, but may be formed intermittently along the circumferential direction. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4 showing another embodiment of the present invention, a ring-shaped member 22 is separately formed at a position on the inner peripheral surface of the tank body 9 at approximately the same height as the upper end of the container-shaped stirring body 6. The upper surface of the ring-shaped member 22 may be the lower surface 23 of the grooved portion 13.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, as described above, the laundry is
Mainly, the container-shaped stirring body and the upper circumferential wall of the tub come into contact and are moved by the synergistic effect of their respective frictional forces, so the movement necessary for washing can be secured even when there is a large amount of cloth, and therefore the washing tub For the same volume, the amount of laundry that can be washed at one time is much larger than that of conventional products.
In addition, it can be expected to have a better cleaning effect than before, and there is less damage to the cloth, and there is a wide range of cloth amounts that can maintain an appropriate cleaning effect, so it is possible to avoid excessive or insufficient cleaning effects depending on the amount of cloth. Furthermore, according to the present invention, the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tank body is made substantially flush with the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped stirring body disposed inside the tank body, and the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the container A groove is provided at a portion corresponding to the upper end of the circumferential wall of the agitator-shaped stirring body to form a gap between the upper circumferential wall of the tank body and the upper end of the circumferential wall of the container-shaped agitator, and the lower surface of the groove is shaped like a container. Since the agitator is positioned approximately at the same height as the upper end of the agitator, it prevents laundry from spreading along the inner circumferential surface of the tub, which is pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the tub by centrifugal force during spin-drying. The lower surface of the groove can prevent it from spreading further downward,
This prevents laundry from entering the small gap between the inner circumferential surface of the tub and the outer circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitator, while providing a stepped surface to prevent laundry from entering. Since the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tub body is approximately flush with the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitating body, the laundry can be easily applied to both the upper circumferential wall of the tub body and the circumferential wall of the container-shaped agitating body during washing. It has the excellent effect of providing a good cleaning effect.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 3 show an embodiment of the present invention,
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional side view, Fig. 2 is a cleaning ratio characteristic curve diagram, Fig. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of main parts for explanation of use, and Fig. 4 is a main part showing another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. In the figure, 5 is a tank body, 6 is a container-shaped stirring body, 9 is a tank main body, 10 is a cylindrical wall, 12 is a step surface (lower step surface of the grooved part), 13 is a grooved part, and 14 is a The gap 23 is the lower surface of the groove.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A container-shaped agitation body that is rotated forward and backward during washing and rotates integrally with the tank body during dehydration is disposed at the inner lower part of the tank body that is stopped during washing and rotated during dehydration,
Laundry is accommodated in the tub together with water so that the laundry is made to flow mainly due to the contact frictional force with the container-shaped stirring body, and synergy with the contact frictional force received from the upper peripheral wall of the tubular body. The inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall of the tub body is formed to be substantially flush with the inner circumferential surface of the container-shaped agitating body, and the inner circumferential surface of the upper circumferential wall includes the container. A groove is provided at a portion corresponding to the upper end of the circumferential wall of the agitator-shaped stirring body to form a gap between the upper circumferential wall of the tank body and the upper end of the circumferential wall of the container-shaped agitator, and the position of the lower surface of the groove is A dehydrating/washing machine characterized in that the washing machine is located at approximately the same height as the upper end of a container-shaped agitator.