JPH07178279A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To realize a washing machine capable of improving washing perfor mance and efficiently washing even partial stains without increasing the damage of wash. CONSTITUTION:This washing machine has a spinning tub 2, a circulating route 17 for circulating washing water and a pump 15 for circulating the washing water into the circulating route 17. The circulating route 17 has a discharge port 18 for discharging the washing water like a shower to the spinning tub 2 and is provided with an ultrasonic generator upstream of the discharge port 18.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a washing machine used in general households, and relates to improvement of washing performance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The structure of a conventional washing machine will be described with reference to the attached FIG. In the figure, 1 is a main body of a washing machine, 2 is a washing tub that stores washing water and stores laundry, 3 is a dehydration tub which is contained in the washing tub 2 and has a fluid balancer 4 on an upper portion, and 5 is a bottom of the dehydration tub 3. Is a washing means, that is, a pulsator, arranged to rotate the pulsator 5 to create a water flow for washing. Reference numeral 6 denotes a transmission mechanism, which internally includes a reduction gear that reduces the rotation of the pulsator 5 to a predetermined rotation during washing, a clutch that switches between rotationally driving the pulsator 5 or the dehydration tub 3 according to washing and dehydration, and a dehydration tub. It has a built-in brake to decelerate the rotation of 3. 7 is a motor provided at the bottom of the washing tub 2, 8 and 9 are a motor side pulley and a transmission mechanism side pulley, respectively.
The power of the motor 7 is transmitted via the. Reference numeral 11 is a water supply valve that is connected to the water supply and supplies the washing water to the washing tub 2, and 12 is a detergent container provided on the way of supplying water to the washing tub 2.

The operation of the conventional washing machine having the above-mentioned structure will be briefly described below. The user of the washing machine first puts a laundry (not shown) into the dehydration tub 3, then puts a detergent according to the amount of the laundry into the detergent container 12, and then presses the start switch of the washing machine to wash. Start. After this, the water supply valve 11 is opened to start water supply, and the supplied wash water is poured into the washing tub 5 with the detergent in the detergent container 12 located in the middle of the water supply path. After supplying a predetermined amount of water, the pulsator 5 is rotationally driven to wash the laundry.
After washing, rinsing and dehydration are performed to complete the washing.

[0004]

In the conventional washing machine described above, it is impossible to completely wash the laundry in which the dirt is firmly adhered locally, for example, the dirt on the collar sleeve of the shirt. In addition, in order to obtain cleaning performance that is higher than the current level, it is possible to increase the rotation speed of the pulsator and set a long rotation time to give the laundry greater mechanical force than the current level.・ There was a problem that the entanglement became extremely large and it was not practical at all.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems and improves the cleaning performance without increasing the mechanical force applied to the laundry, that is, without increasing the damage to the laundry, and is effective even for partial stains. The first object is to provide a washing machine that can be washed. It is a second object of the present invention to provide a washing machine that reduces the mechanical force applied to the laundry to reduce the damage to the laundry and improves the cleaning performance.

[0006]

To achieve the first object, the first means of the present invention is a washing tub, a circulation path for circulating the washing water, and a circulation of the washing water in the circulation path. The washing machine is equipped with a pump, and the circulation path has a discharge port for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape, and an ultrasonic generator is provided upstream of the discharge port.

In order to achieve the second object, the second means of the present invention comprises a washing tub, a circulation path for circulating the washing water, and a pump for circulating the washing water in the circulation path,
The circulation path is a washing machine having a discharge port for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape and a foam generating device provided upstream of the discharge port.

[0008]

According to the first means of the present invention, since the ultrasonic wave generator is provided upstream of the outlet of the circulating wash water, ultrasonic waves are added to the shower-like wash water discharged into the washing tub. When the shower to which the ultrasonic waves are added is poured on the laundry in the washing tub, an extremely large cleaning power is exerted by the ultrasonic vibration and the cavitation effect. The cleaning effect by ultrasonic waves exerts a great effect because it locally concentrates, and the energy of the ultrasonic waves itself is small and does not give the laundry power to damage it,
The washing performance can be improved without increasing the damage to the laundry.

Further, according to the second means of the present invention, since the foam generating device is provided upstream of the outlet of the circulating wash water,
A large amount of foam is present in the shower-like washing water discharged into the washing tub. The foam in the wash water has a large amount of detergent components, that is, surfactants, concentrated on the surface thereof. When the shower in which the foam is present is poured onto the laundry in the washing tub, the high-concentration surfactant on the surface of the foam effectively acts on the dirt of the laundry to exert a great cleaning power. In addition, the foam in the wash water serves as a cushion for the laundry, which can reduce the damage to the laundry and improve the cleaning performance.

[0010]

EXAMPLE An example of the first means of the present invention is shown in FIG.
A description will be given based on FIG. Here, the same configurations as those of the conventional example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. 1 is a main body, 2 is a washing tub, 3 is a dehydration tub, 4 is a fluid balancer, 5
Is a pulsator, 6 is a transmission mechanism, and 7 is the washing tub 2
Is a motor provided on the bottom of the motor, 8 is a motor side pulley, 9 is a reach mechanism side pulley, 10 is a belt, and 11 is a water supply valve. 12
Is a detergent container provided on the way of supplying water to the washing tub 2. Reference numeral 13 denotes a drain port provided at the bottom of the washing tub 2, one of which communicates with a drain valve 14 and one of which communicates with a pump 15. The drain valve 14 is connected to a drain hose 16 leading to the outside of the machine, and the pump 15 is connected to a circulation path 17 for returning washing water to the washing tub 2. The circulation path 17 is provided with a discharge port 18 for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape. 19 is a discharge port 18
Ultrasonic transducer provided upstream of the ultrasonic transducer 2
0 and ultrasonic oscillator 21.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. First, the user puts the laundry in the washing tub 2, and puts a predetermined amount of detergent into the detergent container 13 according to the amount of the laundry. After that, the water supply valve 11 is energized for a predetermined time, and water is supplied into the washing tub 2 together with the detergent in the detergent container 13 to store a predetermined amount of washing water.
At this time, when the pump 15 is operated, the washing water in the washing tub 2 is absorbed from the drain 13 and returned to the washing tub 2 through the circulation path 17 from the discharge port 18 in the form of a shower. Here, when the ultrasonic generator 19 is driven, the shower to which ultrasonic waves are added is poured directly onto the laundry. Since the detergent poured into the washing tub 2 together with the water supply was not completely dissolved and stayed on the laundry, it was possible to dissolve the detergent in an extremely short time by the above-mentioned ultrasonic shower. . As a result, the ability of the detergent can be fully exerted from the beginning of washing, and the washing performance can be greatly improved. Further, when a predetermined amount of washing water is supplied, the pulsator 5 is rotationally driven by the motor 7 to wash for a predetermined time. Even during this cleaning, the above-mentioned shower to which ultrasonic waves are applied is applied to the laundry that has floated above the washing tub. At this time, the shower to which the ultrasonic waves are applied exerts an extremely large cleaning power on the local portion of the laundry hit by the ultrasonic vibration and the cavitation effect. The cleaning effect by ultrasonic waves is extremely concentrated because it works locally, and the energy of the ultrasonic waves is small and does not give the laundry the power to damage it. The cleaning performance can be remarkably improved in combination with the above-described detergent dissolution promoting effect without increasing the value. It should be noted that while the ultrasonic generator 19 is in operation, the shower to which ultrasonic waves are applied is intentionally applied to a laundry, for example, a collar sleeve portion of a clothes where dirt is firmly adhered, so that it can be performed easily and extremely easily. Partial washing is possible in a short time.

Next, FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the second invention.
It will be described with reference to FIG. The same configurations as those of the first invention are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. 1 is a main body, 2 is a washing tub, 3 is a dewatering tub, 4 is a fluid balancer, 5 is a pulsator, 6 is a transmission mechanism, 7 is a motor provided at the bottom of the washing tub 2, 8 is a motor side pulley, 9 Is a pulley on the reaching mechanism side, 10 is a belt, and 11 is a water supply valve. Reference numeral 12 is a detergent container provided on the way of supplying water to the washing tub 2. Reference numeral 13 is a drain port provided at the bottom of the washing tub 2, one of which is the drain valve 1
One side of 4 is connected to the pump 15. The drain valve 14 is connected to a drain hose 16 leading to the outside of the machine, and the pump 15 is connected to a circulation path 17 for returning washing water to the washing tub 2.
The circulation path 17 is provided with a discharge port 18 for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape. Reference numeral 22 is a foam generating device provided upstream of the discharge port 18, and by providing an air hole 23 for introducing air, foam is generated in the shower by utilizing the eject effect. In order to prevent the washing water from leaking from the air hole 23, the air hole 23 communicates with an intake hole 24 formed in the upper portion of the washing tub 2.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. First, the user puts the laundry in the washing tub 2, and puts a predetermined amount of detergent into the detergent container 13 according to the amount of the laundry. After that, the water supply valve 11 is energized for a predetermined time, and water is supplied into the washing tub 2 together with the detergent in the detergent container 13 to store a predetermined amount of washing water.
At this time, when the pump 15 is operated, the washing water in the washing tub 2 is absorbed from the drain 13 and returned to the washing tub 2 through the circulation path 17 from the discharge port 18 in the form of a shower. When a predetermined amount of washing water is supplied, the pulsator 5 is rotationally driven by the motor 7 to wash for a predetermined time. here,
Due to the ejecting action of the foam generating device 22, the air holes 23
The air is introduced from and the fine bubbles are mixed into the water flow in the shower. When the shower with foam is poured directly onto the laundry, the above-mentioned shower with foam is applied to the laundry floating above the washing tub.
Foam in the shower has a large amount of detergent components, that is, surfactants, concentrated on the surface, and when the shower in which the foam is present is poured onto the laundry in the washing tub, a large amount of the surfactant on the foam surface is present. Effectively acts on the dirt of laundry and exerts a great cleaning power. Further, the foam widely spread in the washing water acts on all the dirt of the laundry to further enhance the cleaning effect, and also serves as a cushion for the laundry to reduce damage to the laundry. .

[0014]

As described above, according to the first means, since the ultrasonic wave generator is provided upstream of the outlet of the circulating wash water, the ultrasonic wave is applied to the shower-like wash water discharged to the washing tub. Is added. The shower to which this ultrasonic wave is added is poured into the laundry in the washing tub, and an extremely large cleaning power can be exerted by the ultrasonic vibration and the cavitation effect, and the energy of the ultrasonic wave itself is small and damages the laundry. This kind of power is not applied to the laundry. This makes it possible to greatly improve the cleaning performance without increasing the damage to the laundry.

According to the second means, since the foam generating device is provided upstream of the outlet of the circulating wash water, a large amount of foam is present in the shower-like wash water discharged into the washing tub. Since a large amount of detergent components, that is, surfactants, are concentrated on the surface of the foam in the wash water, a large amount of the surfactant on the foam surface can effectively act on the dirt of the laundry and exert a great cleaning power. At the same time, the foam in the wash water serves as a cushion for the laundry and the damage to the laundry can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a fully automatic washing machine showing an embodiment of the first invention of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view of the same embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of a fully automatic washing machine showing an embodiment of the second invention of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view of the same embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a conventional fully automatic washing machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Washing tank 5 Water tank 7 Motor 11 Water supply valve 12 Detergent container of the first invention 15 Pump 17 Circulation path 18 Discharge port 19 Ultrasonic generator 22 Foam generator

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Yoshimi Urata 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A washing tub that stores washing water, stores laundry, and has a washing means, a circulation path for circulating the washing water, and a pump for circulating the washing water in the circulation path. A washing machine having a discharge port for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape, and an ultrasonic wave generator provided upstream of the discharge port. 2. A washing tub that stores washing water and stores laundry and has a washing means, a circulation path that circulates the washing water, and a pump that circulates the washing water in the circulation path. A washing machine having a discharge port for discharging washing water into a washing tub in a shower shape, and a foam generating device provided upstream of the discharge port.