JPH05261053A - Tableware washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To stably maintain washing force of a washing liquid for many hours in a washing tank of the tableware washing machine. CONSTITUTION:In a bottom part of a washing tank 31 of the tableware washing machine, an opening part 46 for discharging a washing liquid is provided, and in the opening part 46, an automatic opening/closing valve 42 is installed. To the automatic opening/closing valve 42, one end of a flow passage 41 is connected, and in the other end of the flow passage 41, a filter 43 for filtering dregs in the washing liquid is provided. When the automatic opening/closing valve 42 is set to an open state in accordance with a downtime after, for instance, a washing cycle is finished by an operation of an opening/closing control means, during this downtime, the washing liquid is discharged to the filter 43 through the flow passage 41 by gravity from the opening part 46, and only dregs are filtered in the filter 43.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a dishwasher for business use, and more particularly to a dishwasher in which the washing power of a washing liquid in a washing tank can be stably maintained for a long time.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A dishwasher is a dishwasher in which the washing liquid and rinse water pressurized by a pump are sequentially sprayed vertically from the vertical direction onto a dirty dish installed in the dishwasher.

An example of this dishwasher is that disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-129566. The structure of this dishwasher is shown in FIG.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 1 is a cleaning tank for storing the cleaning liquid, reference numeral 2 is a main cleaning nozzle for spraying the cleaning liquid on dishes, and reference numeral 3 is a main cleaning nozzle for supplying the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 1 to the main cleaning nozzle 2. It is a washing pump. Further, reference numeral 4 is a water heater, reference numeral 5 is a booster for further heating hot water supplied from the water heater 4 into high-temperature rinse water, and reference numeral 6 is a rinse nozzle 6 for rinsing water supplied from the booster 5. It is a rinse pump 7 for supplying to. Here, the paths from the cleaning tank 1 to the main cleaning nozzle 2 and the water heater 4 to the rinsing nozzle 6 are all connected by a pipe line 8.

Reference numeral 11 is a detergent supply device. This apparatus is composed of a detergent pump 11b for pumping the detergent in the detergent tank 11a and a hose 11c for supplying the pumped detergent to the cleaning tank 1. The operating time of the detergent pump 11b is the operating time of the rinsing pump 7. Is in sync with.

Reference numeral 9 denotes a drain port for discharging the excess cleaning liquid and maintaining the water level of the cleaning tank 1 at a constant level, and its upper end 9
The opening a is on the same plane as the proper water level in the cleaning tank 1. Further, reference numeral 12 is a filter installed at the upper part of the washing tank for filtering out residues such as food residues mixed in the cleaning liquid, and reference numeral 10 is the dishwasher container.

In the above conventional dishwasher, a dishwashing basket (not shown) accommodating dishes is installed on the washing tank 1 and the main washing pump is operated to supply the washing liquid to the main washing nozzle 2
Repeating the main washing process of spraying from the nozzle toward the tableware and the rinse process of operating the rinse pump 7 to spray the rinse water from the rinse nozzle 6 toward the tableware using a method such as a timer control. Will automatically wash the dishes. In this case, a certain rest time is provided between the main cleaning process and the rinsing process.

On the other hand, the detergent concentration in the cleaning liquid decreases due to the inflow of rinsing water sprayed from the rinsing nozzle 6 in the rinsing stroke, but as described above, the operating time of the detergent supply device 11 is the operating time of the rinsing pump 7. Since they are synchronized, a certain amount of detergent is supplied to the cleaning tank 1 for each rinsing process of the dishwasher by the action of the detergent supply device 11. As a result, the supplied detergent prevents the concentration of the detergent in the cleaning tank 1 from decreasing.

[0009]

Normally, in a dishwasher, both the cleaning liquid sprayed from the main cleaning nozzle 2 and the rinse water sprayed from the rinsing nozzle 6 are collected in the cleaning tank 1. Since the dirt adhering to is mixed in the cleaning liquid together with the cleaning, the cleaning liquid may gradually become dirty as the cleaning is repeated, and the cleaning performance of the cleaning liquid may decrease.

Therefore, in the above-mentioned conventional dishwasher, as described above, the rinse water is made to flow into the washing tank 1 along with the rinse process, and the detergent is supplied in synchronization with the rinse process, and the increase is caused by the inflow of the rinse water. The cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 1 was purified and renewed by overflowing and discharging the cleaning liquid from the upper end 9a of the drain port.

From the viewpoint of purifying and renewing the cleaning liquid, it is desirable that the drainage water discharged from the cleaning tank 1 with the inflow of rinse water is a cleaning liquid which is contaminated and deteriorated in cleaning performance over several uses. .. However, since the rinsing water and the detergent are both supplied to the cleaning tank 1 from above, the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 1 is used less frequently as the cleaning liquid is closer to the liquid surface, and thus the cleaning performance is higher and the cleaning performance is deteriorated due to contamination. The washed liquid tends to accumulate at the bottom.

As a result, when the cleaning liquid is discharged by overflow from the upper end 9a of the drain port, the cleaning liquid having the highest cleaning ability near the liquid surface is directly discharged, while the cleaning liquid having a low cleaning ability accumulated at the bottom is discharged. However, there is a problem that the cleaning liquid is not always sufficiently purified and renewed.

Further, the residue mixed with the cleaning liquid during the main cleaning process is accumulated in the filter 12 installed in the upper part of the cleaning tank 1, but since the filter 12 is installed in the upper part of the cleaning tank 1, When circulating the cleaning solution in the cleaning process,
The cleaning liquid always circulates through the layer of the residue accumulated in the filter 12, and as a result, there is a problem that the cleaning ability (alkali activity) of the cleaning liquid decreases due to a chemical reaction with the residue.

[0014]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and includes a main cleaning stroke in which a cleaning liquid in a cleaning tank is circulated by a main cleaning pump toward a cleaning target, and a rinsing liquid. In a dishwasher that performs a rinsing process in which a rinsing pump sprays the object toward the object to be washed, an opening portion that can be opened and closed by opening and closing means is provided at the bottom of the washing tank, and opening and closing control means for opening and closing the opening And a filter for filtering the residue in the cleaning liquid in the flow path of the cleaning liquid flowing out from the opening.

[0015]

In the dishwasher of the present invention, since the opening is provided at the bottom of the washing tank and the opening timing is automatically controlled by the opening control means, the excess washing liquid is circulated in the washing liquid. When it is discharged to the outside, the cleaning liquid having a low cleaning ability accumulated at the bottom of the cleaning tank is preferentially and automatically discharged.

Further, since the filter for filtering the residue in the cleaning liquid is provided in the flow path of the cleaning liquid flowing out from the opening, the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank comes into contact with the residue accumulated in the filter. Is prevented.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. An example of the structure of the dishwasher according to the present invention is shown in FIG. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 31 is a cleaning tank, and the cleaning liquid is stored in this cleaning tank 31. A main cleaning pump 32 is installed at the bottom of the cleaning tank 31, and by the action of the main cleaning pump 32, the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 31 is supplied to the main cleaning nozzle 34 via the first conduit 33.

Reference numeral 35 is a water source such as a water tap. The water supplied from the water source 35 is heated by a water heater 36 and becomes hot water of about 60 ° C., which reaches a booster 37 and a booster 37. It is further heated to become rinse water at about 90 ° C. The rinse water is further supplied to the rinse nozzle 39 by the action of the rinse pump 38. Where water source 35
A path from the rinsing pump 38 to the rinsing nozzle 39 is connected by a second conduit 40.

An opening 46 is formed at the bottom of the cleaning tank 31, and the opening 46 can be opened and closed by an automatic opening / closing valve (opening / closing means) 42. As the automatic opening / closing valve 42, for example, a solenoid valve or the like is used.

One end of the flow passage 41 is connected to the automatic opening / closing valve 42, and the other end of the flow passage 41 is provided with a filter 43 for filtering the residue in the cleaning liquid as shown in FIG. 2, for example. The filter 43 is a removable basket-like member made of, for example, stainless steel or the like, and has a structure capable of passing a liquid but not a solid substance. Reference numeral 43a is a container that supports the filter 43, and reference numeral 47 is a valve that adjusts the amount of drainage from the container 43a.

The operation timing and operation time of the main cleaning pump 32, the rinsing pump 38, and the automatic opening / closing valve 42 are controlled by pump control means and opening / closing control means (neither shown) using a timer or the like, respectively. To be done.

On the other hand, reference numeral 44 is a detergent supply device. This detergent supply device includes a detergent tank 44a containing detergent.
And a detergent pump 44b mounted on the detergent tank 44a
And a hose 44c connecting the detergent pump 44b and the cleaning tank 31. The operating time of the detergent pump 44b is synchronized with the operating time of the rinsing pump 38. Reference numeral 45 is a container that covers the periphery of the dishwasher.

Next, the washing process of the dishes (objects to be washed) in the dishwasher having the above-mentioned structure will be described below. FIG. 3 is a time chart showing a washing process in the dishwasher of this embodiment and an operation process of each element constituting the dishwasher.

After turning on the power of the dishwasher and placing a dishwashing basket (not shown) containing the dishes on the washing tank 31,
When the dishwasher is started, first, the main washing pump 32 is operated by the action of the pump control means, and the washing liquid in the washing tank 31 is sprayed from the main washing nozzle 34 toward the dishes through the first conduit 33. Then, the dishes are washed. This is the main cleaning process. In the main washing process, the automatic open / close valve 42 is closed.

After the end of the main cleaning process, a certain rest time is provided. In the present embodiment, the opening / closing control means operates in response to this rest time, and the automatic on-off valve 42 is opened. .. As a result, during the rest time, the cleaning liquid is exposed to the opening 4
6 is discharged by gravity through the flow path 41 to the filter 43, and only the residue is filtered off in the filter 43. When the rest time ends, the automatic on-off valve 42 is closed again,
The discharge of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning tank 31 to the filter 43 is stopped. The residue collected by the filter 43 is properly discarded.

Next, the rinsing pump 38 is operated by the action of the pump control means, and the water supplied from the water source 35 passes through the second pipeline 40 and the water heater 36 and the booster 3
It is heated at 7 and becomes rinse water of about 90 ° C. and is sprayed from the rinsing nozzle 39 toward the tableware to rinse the tableware. This is the rinsing process. Further, as described above, since the operating time of the detergent pump 44b is synchronized with the operating time of the rinsing pump 38, the detergent pump 44b operates at each rinsing stroke, and a certain amount of detergent empties the hose 44c during the rinsing stroke. After that, it is supplied to the cleaning tank 31.

The main cleaning pump 32 and the rinsing pump 38 are alternately operated by the pump control means, and the automatic opening / closing valve 4 is operated during the rest time by the opening / closing control means.
When 2 is opened, the main cleaning process and the rinsing process are repeated at regular intervals with the cleaning liquid discharging process interposed therebetween, and the dishes are automatically cleaned. In the case of the present embodiment, the cycle is, for example, 50 seconds for the main cleaning step, 5 seconds for the rest time, and 10 seconds for the rinsing step.

Here, both the cleaning liquid sprayed from the main cleaning nozzle 34 and the rinse water sprayed from the rinsing nozzle 39 flow into the cleaning tank 31, and are used again in the main cleaning process by the action of the main cleaning pump 34. It Therefore, the detergent concentration in the cleaning tank 31 decreases due to the inflow of rinsing water accompanying the rinsing process, but as described above, the detergent supplying device supplies a certain amount of detergent to the cleaning tank 31 during the rinsing process. Therefore, the cleaning tank 3 due to the inflow of the rinse water
It is possible to prevent a decrease in the detergent concentration in the cleaning tank 1 and keep the detergent concentration in the cleaning tank 31 constant at all times.

Moreover, since the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 31 is discharged through the opening of the opening portion 46 during the rest time,
If the inflow amount of the rinse water accompanying the rinsing process and the discharge amount of the cleaning liquid from the opening of the opening 46 are matched, the water level in the cleaning tank 1 can be constantly maintained.

On the other hand, as described above, generally, in the cleaning tank 31, the cleaning liquid closer to the liquid surface has a higher cleaning ability, and the cleaning liquid which is dirty and has a reduced cleaning ability tends to accumulate at the bottom.
In the case of the dishwasher of the present invention, since the cleaning liquid is discharged from the bottom of the cleaning tank 31, the discharged cleaning liquid is mainly a cleaning liquid having a lowered cleaning ability.

Therefore, in the cleaning tank 31, a cleaning liquid which is clean and has high cleaning ability is supplied from above and
The cleaning liquid that has become dirty and has reduced cleaning ability is discharged from the bottom,
As a result, the cleaning liquid is sufficiently purified and renewed, and the deterioration of the cleaning performance of the cleaning liquid is prevented.

Further, a filter 43 for filtering out the residue in the cleaning liquid
Is provided at the end of the flow path 41, the residue accumulated in the filter 43 is separated from the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 31, and as a result, the cleaning liquid has a cleaning ability (activity) due to a chemical reaction accompanying the contact with the residue. The decrease in alkalinity is prevented.

In the above embodiment, the operation timing of the opening / closing control means is interlocked with the operation timing of the pump control means so that the automatic opening / closing valve 42 is opened during the pause time between the main cleaning process and the rinsing process. However, as the opening / closing control means, a float switch that detects the water level of the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank 31, a timer that can be set at an arbitrary time, or the like may be used, or the plurality of control means may be used in combination to perform automatic operation. The operation stroke of the on-off valve 42 may be controlled. Opening 4
Of course, it is also possible to discharge the cleaning liquid by opening 6 during the rinsing process or the main cleaning process.

[0034]

[Experimental Example] The effect of the present invention will be described below with reference to an experimental example. Using two kinds of cleaning methods shown in A and B, the dishes are washed under the conditions shown in Table 1, respectively, and the cleaning ability of the cleaning liquid (active alkalinity) with the increase in the number of times of cleaning.
The changes of the above were investigated and compared. The result is shown in FIG.

Washing method A (when using a conventional dishwasher): Using a washing tank having a capacity of 60 liters, the excess washing liquid was overflowed and discharged. Further, 6 liters of warm water was used for each rinsing.

Washing method B (when the dishwasher of the present invention is used): A washing tank having a capacity of 18 liters
/ 3 was discharged from the bottom of the cleaning tank as the excess cleaning liquid each time.
Further, 6 liters of warm water was used for each rinsing.

The same detergent and stain were used, and the temperature of hot water was set to 60 ° C.

[0038]

[Table 1]

As shown in FIG. 4, when the cleaning method A is used, when the cleaning is repeated about 10 times, the activity of the detergent is the active alkalinity = 1.50 which is an index of the effective cleaning ability of the detergent. × is 10 ^-2% or less, while no longer valid cleaning is carried out, in the case of using the cleaning method B can be repeated 16 times washing, the activity of the detergent active alkalinity = 1.50 × It was 10 ^-2 % or more. this is,
In the cleaning method B, if the number of continuous cleanings is at least 16 times or less, it means that effective cleaning is always performed.

Moreover, the activity of the detergent was maintained at substantially the same level in these 16 washings. In the cleaning method B, the number of continuous cleanings is at least 1.
If it is 6 times or less, it indicates that stable cleaning is performed with very little difference in cleaning degree even under the same cleaning conditions.

That is, when the dishwasher of the present invention is used for washing, the washing power of the washing liquid in the washing tank is maintained at a stable level for a longer time than when the dishwasher of the related art is used. Is also clear from the above experimental example.

[0042]

As described above, in the dishwasher of the present invention, the opening for discharging the cleaning liquid to the outside of the circulation system is provided at the bottom of the cleaning tank, and the opening timing is automatically controlled by the opening control means. Therefore, when the excess cleaning liquid is discharged to the outside of the circulation system, the cleaning liquid having a low cleaning ability accumulated at the bottom of the cleaning tank is preferentially and automatically discharged. Therefore, it is possible to surely clean and renew the cleaning liquid by flowing the rinse liquid into the cleaning tank during the rinsing process.

Further, since the filter for storing the residue in the cleaning liquid is provided in the flow path of the cleaning liquid flowing out from the opening, the cleaning liquid in the circulation system is separated from the residue accumulated in the filter. .. Therefore, it is possible to prevent deterioration of the cleaning ability of the cleaning liquid due to contact with the residue.

As a result, in the dishwasher of the present invention, the washing power of the washing liquid in the washing tank can be stably maintained for a long time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a dishwasher of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the dishwasher showing an example of the structure of the dishwasher of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a time chart showing an example of a washing process in the dishwasher of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram comparing changes in the cleaning ability of the cleaning liquid with the increase in the number of times of cleaning when the dishwasher of the present invention and the conventional dishwasher are used.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a conventional dishwasher.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,31 Washing tank 2,34 Main washing nozzle 3,32 Main washing pump 4,36 Water heater 5,37 Booster 6,39 Rinse nozzle 7,38 Rinse pump 8 Pipe line 9 Drain port 9a Drain upper end 10, 43a, 45 Container 11,44 Detergent supply device 11a, 44a Detergent tank 11c, 44c Hose 11b, 44b Detergent pump 12,43 Filter 33 First pipe 35 Water source 40 Second pipe 41 Flow passage 42 Automatic opening / closing valve 46 Opening 47 valve

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A main cleaning step in which a cleaning tank is formed below a cleaning chamber containing an object to be cleaned, and a cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank is sprayed toward the object to be cleaned while being circulated by a main cleaning pump. In a dishwasher that performs a rinsing step of spraying rinsing water toward the object to be cleaned by a rinsing pump, an opening is formed at the bottom of the cleaning tank,
A dishwasher comprising: an opening / closing means for opening / closing the opening; and an opening / closing control means for controlling opening / closing of the opening by the opening / closing means. 2. The dishwasher according to claim 1, wherein a filter for filtering off the residue in the cleaning liquid is provided in the flow path of the cleaning liquid flowing out from the opening. 3. The dishwasher according to claim 1, wherein the opening / closing control means opens the opening between the main washing process and the rinsing process.