JPH08318086A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To quickly execute the abnormality detection of a brake device by detecting that the brake device is abnormal when a detected rotation speed exceeds a reference value for judging abnormality. CONSTITUTION: This washing machine is provided with a means for detecting that the brake device 18 is abnormal when the detected rotation speed exceeds the reference value for judging the abnormality and the means for reporting the abnormality. That is, the rotation speed of a spinning tub 4 is detected at the point of time when set time elapses after the braking of the spinning tub 4 is started, the abnormality of the brake device 18 is detected when the rotation speed exceeds the reference value for judging the abnormality and the abnormality of the brake device 18 is reported by the reporting means. Thus, since a user recognizes that brake performance is lowered, the washing machine is not kept used while the braking force of the brake device 18 is lowered. Also, since the abnormality is detected at the point of time when the set time elapses after the braking is started, the abnormality detection is quickly executed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a washing machine having a function of rotating a rotary tub at a high speed to centrifuge and spin-dry the laundry contained in the rotary tub.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a fully automatic washing machine, a laundry tub, which also serves as a washing tub and a dewatering tub, is rotated at a high speed to centrifuge and dehydrate the laundry contained in the rotating tub. . Then, for example, a band brake device is provided as a brake device that brakes and stops the rotary tank, and is configured to operate the brake device to stop the rotary tank when the dehydration operation is completed or temporarily stopped. Has been done. In the case of this configuration, the rotation tank is stopped within, for example, 15 seconds after the brake of the rotation tank is started by the brake device. That is, the braking performance of stopping within 15 seconds after the start of braking is set as the normal braking performance of the braking device.

[0003]

However, when the fully automatic washing machine is used for a long period of time, the braking surface of the brake band of the band brake device is worn, the spring force for tightening the brake band is weakened, or the bearing is damaged. Lubricating oil may adhere to the braking surface. In such a state, the braking force of the brake device is weakened, so that a problem occurs that the time from the start of braking to the stop exceeds 15 seconds. Since the user cannot clearly recognize that the braking performance has deteriorated, the user has often continued to use the washing machine while the above-mentioned inconvenience occurred.

As a structure for solving such a problem, there is a conventional washing machine described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-186293. In this configuration, after the braking of the rotary tank is started, the time required for the rotation speed of the rotary tank to decrease to a predetermined constant speed is measured, and when this measurement time is longer than the abnormality determination reference value, It is configured to detect that the brake device is abnormal. And in the above configuration,
Since it is possible to notify the user of the detected abnormality of the brake device, the user can recognize the abnormality of the brake device and call a service person for repair.

However, in the above-mentioned conventional structure, since the time from the start of braking until the rotational speed of the rotary tank decreases to a constant speed is measured, the above-mentioned rotation is performed in the abnormal state of the braking device in which the braking force is decreased. The time required for the speed to decrease to a constant speed becomes considerably long. For this reason, there is a drawback in that the time required to detect an abnormality in the brake device becomes considerably long, in other words, the abnormality detection becomes considerably slow. If the abnormality detection becomes slower, the notification of the abnormality becomes slower accordingly.Therefore, if the lid is opened during the rotation of the rotary tank, it is more likely that the user puts his / her hand etc. into the rotating rotary tank. There was a risk of injury.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a washing machine which is configured to detect an abnormality of a brake device and notify the user of the abnormality, but which can quickly detect the abnormality.

[0007]

A washing machine of the present invention comprises a rotary tub which is provided so as to be rotatable at a high speed and which centrifuges and dewaters the laundry contained therein, and a brake device which brakes and stops the rotary tub. A washing machine comprising: a rotation speed detecting means for detecting a rotation speed of the rotary tub; and a rotation speed of the rotary tub is detected when a set time has elapsed after the braking of the rotary tub is started and the detection is performed. A feature is that an abnormality detection unit that detects that the brake device is abnormal when the rotation speed exceeds an abnormality determination reference value and an informing unit that notifies that the brake device is abnormal are characterized. Have.

Further, in the case of the above configuration, it is preferable to include an operation control means for setting the rotation speed of the rotary tank to be low in the subsequent high-speed dehydration operation when it is detected that the brake device is abnormal. Furthermore, it is even more preferable that the operation control unit sets the rotation speed of the rotary tank to be low and the dehydration operation time to be long in the subsequent high-speed dehydration operation. Furthermore, the notification means is preferably configured to notify that the brake device is abnormal when the abnormality of the brake device is continuously detected a set number of times.

On the other hand, it is also preferable that the laundry amount detecting means for detecting the amount of laundry in the rotary tub is provided, and the abnormality detecting means is configured to change the set time according to the detected laundry amount. Further, the abnormality detection means may be configured to change the set time according to the rotation speed of the rotary tank detected at the start of braking.

[0010]

According to the above means, after starting the braking of the rotary tank,
When the set time has elapsed, the rotation speed of the rotary tank is detected,
When the detected rotation speed exceeds the abnormality determination reference value, the abnormality of the brake device is detected, and the abnormality of the brake device is notified by the notification means. As a result, the user can clearly recognize that the braking performance has deteriorated, so that the user will not continue to use the washing machine with the braking force of the braking device reduced. Further, since the abnormality is detected when the set time has elapsed from the start of braking, the abnormality can be detected earlier than the conventional configuration.

Further, when the abnormality of the brake device is detected, the rotational speed of the rotary tank in the high speed dehydration operation after the next time is set to be low, so that the rotary tank can be rotated within the allowable time even if the braking force is reduced. Can be stopped. In this case, if the rotation speed of the rotary tank is set to be low, the dehydration performance will be deteriorated. However, by setting the dehydration operation time to be long, the deterioration of the dehydration performance can be prevented as much as possible. In addition, since it is configured to notify that the brake device is abnormal when the brake device abnormality is detected continuously for the set number of times, after the accidental occurrence of the brake device abnormality for some reason, the operation after that is performed. Then, when the brake device comes to operate normally, the abnormality of the brake device is not notified. That is, the abnormality of the braking device can be notified to the user only when the braking force of the braking device really decreases.

On the other hand, when the amount of laundry in the rotary tub is detected and the set time length from the start of braking to the detection of the rotation speed is varied in accordance with the detected amount of laundry, the braking is performed. It is possible to detect the abnormality of the device with higher accuracy. Furthermore, even if the set time from the start of braking to the detection of the rotation speed is made variable according to the rotation speed of the rotary tank detected at the start of braking, the abnormality of the brake device can be detected with higher accuracy. be able to.

[0013]

[First Embodiment] The first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a fully automatic washing machine.
The embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. First, in FIG. 2 showing a schematic overall configuration of a fully automatic washing machine, an outer tub 2 is swingably disposed in an outer box 1 via an elastic suspension mechanism 3. In the outer tub 2, a rotary tub 4 which doubles as a washing tub and a dehydrating tub is rotatably provided, and an agitator 5 for washing is rotatably provided at an inner bottom portion of the rotary tub 4. There is. In the rotary tank 4, the dehydration hole 4a is formed only in the upper part of the peripheral wall portion, and the dehydration hole is not formed in the other peripheral wall portions.

A drainage passage 6 is provided in the inner bottom portion of the outer tank 2 so as to extend from the central portion toward the rear side. The end of the drainage passage 6 on the center side is connected to the inside of the rotary tank 4. The rear end of the drainage passage 6 serves as a drainage port 7, and the drainage port 7 is provided with an air trap 8 for water level detection. The drainage port 7 is configured to be opened and closed by, for example, a motor type drainage valve 9. A drain hose 10 is connected to the lower portion of the drain valve 9. The stirring body 5 is formed with a large number of water passage holes.

In this structure, when the drain valve 9 is opened, the water in the rotary tank 4 is discharged to the outside through the drain passage 6 and the drain hose 10. Also,
An overflow port 11 for draining water overflowing from the rotary tank 4 is formed in the front part of the bottom of the outer tank 2. The overflow port 11 is connected to the drain hose 10 via a hose (not shown). In the case of this configuration, when the water in the rotary tub 4 is discharged into the outer tub 2 through the dehydration hole 4a during the dehydration operation, this drainage is discharged to the outside through the overflow port 11 and the drain hose 10. Is configured to. The air trap 8 has a water level sensor 12 (see FIG.
Are connected via an air pipe 13, and the water level sensor 12 detects the water level in the rotary tank 4.

A balance ring 14 is arranged above the rotary tank 4. A substantially drum-shaped inner basket 15 is disposed on the inner peripheral portion of the rotary tank 4, and the inner basket 15 is made of a stainless steel plate and has a large number of water passage holes formed on the peripheral wall portion. There is. A bottom cover 16 is provided below the inner peripheral portion of the rotary tank 4. A predetermined gap for water passage is provided between the inner basket 15 and the rotary tub 4, and between the bottom cover 16 and the rotary tub 4. In the case of this configuration, the water in the rotary tank 4 flows downward or upward through the predetermined water passage gap during drainage or dehydration operation.

On the other hand, on the outer bottom portion of the outer tub 2, a motor 17 and a drive mechanism portion 18 for washing and dehydrating operations are arranged. The rotational force of the motor 17 is transmitted to the drive mechanism section 18 via the belt transmission mechanism 19. The drive mechanism section 18 has a well-known configuration and includes a clutch mechanism, a speed reducer, a brake device, and the like. The brake device of the drive mechanism portion 18 is a band brake device having a function of braking and stopping the rotary tub 4, and includes a brake drum provided on the tub shaft of the rotary tub 4 so as to rotate integrally therewith, The brake band is provided outside the brake drum. Further, the clutch mechanism of the drive mechanism unit 18 has a function of switching between a state in which the rotational force of the motor 7 is transmitted to the stirring body 5 only by decelerating it via the reduction gear and a state in which it is transmitted to the rotary tank 4 and the stirring body 5. are doing. The brake device and the clutch mechanism are configured to be driven by the drive source of the drain valve 9 (which is composed of a motor, a return spring, etc.) in conjunction with the opening / closing operation of the drain valve 9.

Specifically, during washing with the drain valve 9 closed, the drive mechanism section 18 uses a brake device to rotate the tank 4.
The rotating force of the motor 7 is applied to the agitator 5 while the brake is stopped.
The speed is reduced to and transmitted to rotate the stirring body 5. Then, during drainage and dehydration with the drain valve 9 opened, the drive mechanism unit 18 transmits the rotational force of the motor 7 to the rotary tank 4 and the stirring body 5 in a state where the braking of the rotary tank 4 by the brake device is released. Is configured to rotate at high speed.

A top cover 2 is provided on the top of the outer box 1.
0 is attached, and an electromagnetic water supply valve 21 is arranged at the rear portion of the top cover 20. The water supply valve 21 is configured to supply water into the rotary tank 4. The top cover 20 is provided with, for example, a half-foldable lid 22 that can be opened and closed so as to open and close the entrance of the laundry. A tank cover 23 is attached to the upper portion of the outer tank 2, and an inner lid 24 is provided on the tank cover 23 so as to be openable and closable.

Further, an operation panel 25 as shown in FIG. 3 is provided on the front upper surface of the top cover 20. The operation panel 25 is provided with various key switches and various indicators. Specifically, the right end of the operation panel 25 is provided with an ON switch 26 and a OFF switch 27 for turning the power on and off, and a start switch 28 for starting and temporarily stopping is provided on the left side thereof. Further, in the lower half of the operation panel 25, from the left to the right, a powder soap switch 29 for setting use of powder soap, a water level switch 3 for setting the water level
0, a reservation switch 31 for setting a reserved operation, a washing switch 32 for setting a washing operation time, a rinsing switch 33 for setting a rinsing frequency, a dehydration switch 34 for setting a dehydration operation time, and a strength of each operation according to preference Favorite switch 35 to set, course switch 3 to set laundry course
6 is provided.

In addition, from the left to the right of the upper half of the operation panel 25, a brake abnormality indicator 37 for indicating that the brake device is abnormal, and a shower monitor for displaying the execution state of the dehydration rinse operation. 38, a water level indicator 39 for displaying the set water level, and three numeral indicators 4 including, for example, 7-segment type display elements for displaying the amount of detergent, the washing operation time, the number of rinsing operations, the dehydration operation time, etc.
0, 41, 42, a stroke indicator 43 for displaying the washing stroke,
A course indicator 44 and the like for displaying the set laundry course are provided. In this case, the above-mentioned brake abnormality indicator 3
Reference numeral 7 constitutes the notification means of the present invention.

On the other hand, in FIG. 4 showing the electrical configuration in combination of functional blocks, the control circuit 45 is composed of a microcomputer or the like, has a function of controlling the overall washing operation, and a control program therefor is provided. I remember. The control circuit 45 has a function as a rotation speed detection unit, an abnormality detection unit, an operation control unit, and a laundry amount detection unit. Then, the control circuit 45 outputs various switch signals from the switch input section 46 including various switches of the operation panel 25, a water level detection signal from the water level sensor 12, and a pulse signal according to the rotation of the motor 17. It is configured to receive a pulse signal from the rotation sensor 47 that is generated. In this case, the control circuit 45 detects the rotation speed of the motor 17 based on the pulse signal from the rotation sensor 47, and detects the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 from the rotation speed of the motor 17 during the dehydration operation. ing.

Further, the control circuit 45 has a display section 48 having various indicators of the operation panel 25, a buzzer 49 for notifying the end of operation, the water supply valve 21, the drain valve 9 and the motor 1.
7 is configured to be energized (driven) via the drive circuit 50. In this case, the control circuit 45 controls the motor 1
7 is configured to be capable of variable speed operation control, and the rotational speed of the stirring body 5 can be set to a desired speed during washing, and the rotational speed of the rotary tub 4 can be set to a desired speed during dehydration.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS.
Also, description will be made with reference to FIG. The flowchart of FIG. 1 shows the general control contents of the dehydration operation part of the control program stored in the control circuit 45. Also,
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a data area in the memory built in the control circuit 45 for counting the number of times the abnormality of the brake device is detected. Further, FIG. 6 is a process chart showing each content of the washing process, the rinsing process and the dehydrating process when the washing course is, for example, a standard course.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the washing process, a weight detection operation (for example, 5 seconds) for detecting the amount of laundry is first performed (before water supply), and the detected amount of laundry is large. Set washing conditions such as water level and washing operation time according to medium and small. Then, the water supply operation is performed up to the set water level. Subsequently, the stirring body 5 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions to execute the washing operation. In this case, first, an operation for detecting the cloth quality of the laundry (for example, 1 minute 30 seconds) is performed, the strength of the water flow is determined according to the detected cloth quality, and thereafter, the strength of the determined water flow is determined. Execute the washing operation. Then, when the washing operation is completed, the process proceeds to the rinsing process.

In this rinsing step, first, drainage and dehydration operations are performed, and then a shower rinse operation (an operation of rotating the rotary tub 4 while pouring water and then dehydrating) is repeated twice. Rinse 2 consisting of trial rinse operation is executed. Then, when the rinsing step is completed, the dehydration step is subsequently performed, the drainage and final dehydration operation is executed, and the washing operation is ended.

Therefore, when the above washing course is executed,
The dehydration operation is configured to be executed four times. Here, the operation of the dehydration operation, particularly the braking operation after the completion of the dehydration operation (and after the temporary stop) will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the dehydration operation is started in step S1. In this case, the drain valve 9 is energized and opened to release the braking of the brake device of the drive mechanism portion 18 and the clutch mechanism to the rotary tank 4.
After switching the stirring member 5 to rotate integrally, the motor 17 is energized. As a result, the rotary tub 4 is rotated at a high speed, and the laundry contained therein is centrifugally dehydrated.

When the lid 22 is opened while the centrifugal dehydration is in progress, the process proceeds to "YES" in step S2,
The dehydration operation is stopped (step S5). In addition, a temporary stop switch (start switch 2
Even when 8) is operated, "YES" in step S3.
Then, the dehydration operation is stopped (step S5). Furthermore,
Even when the set dehydration operation time has elapsed, step S
At 4, the process proceeds to "YES" to stop the dehydration operation (step S5).

When the dehydration operation is stopped, the motor 17 is cut off. Subsequently, at this time (that is, at the time of starting the braking), based on the pulse signal from the rotation sensor 47, the rotation speed of the motor 17 and thus the rotation speed R1 of the rotary tank 4 is increased.
Is detected (step S6). When performing the dehydration operation, the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 is about 950 r during high-speed dehydration.
It is set to about pm, about 800 rpm for medium speed dehydration, and about 500 rpm for low speed dehydration.

Subsequently, the detected rotation speed R1 of the rotary tub 4 and the amount of laundry M1 detected at the beginning of the washing process.
Then, the set time t (second) is determined and read based on Table 1 below (step S7). This set time t is for determining whether or not the brake device is operating normally, and the time required until the rotary tank 4 is stopped after the brake is started by the brake device is described above. If it is the set time t or less, it can be determined that the brake device is normal. In addition, the detected rotation speed R1 of the rotary tank 4 is set to a high speed,
When divided into three, medium speed and low speed, it is configured to use two appropriate threshold values (for example, 600 rpm or less is low speed, 600 or more and 900 or less is medium speed, and 900 or more is high speed).

[0031]

[Table 1]

Subsequently, the drain valve 9 is electrically disconnected and closed to start braking of the rotary tank 4 by the brake device of the drive mechanism 18 (step S8). At this time, the time counting operation of the elapsed time from the start of braking is also started. And
After the start of the braking, when the above-described set time t seconds have elapsed, the process proceeds to “YES” in step S9, and the rotation sensor
Based on the pulse signal from 7, the rotation speed R2 of the rotary tank 4 at the time point described above is detected (step S10).
Then, it is judged whether or not the detected rotation speed R2 exceeds zero (step S11).

If the rotational speed R2 is zero, that is, if the rotary tank 4 is stopped, the process proceeds to "NO" in step S11. In this case, the brake device is operating normally. Therefore, "0" is stored in the first data area of the memory 51 shown in FIG. 5A as a data code indicating that (step S12). in this case,
Before performing the above storage operation, the data contents previously stored in the first to ninth data areas of the memory 51 are shifted and stored in the second to tenth data areas of the memory 51. It is configured. In addition, when the power plug of the power line derived from the fully automatic washing machine body is inserted into a power outlet and connected, the contents of the memory 51 are all initialized to "0". Then, as described above, after storing "0" in the first data area of the memory 51, the dehydration operation is terminated and the next step (operation) is performed, or the dehydration operation is temporarily stopped and waited. The state becomes the state or the state where the final dehydration operation is finished (the washing course end state).

On the other hand, if the rotational speed R2 exceeds zero,
That is, if the rotary tank 4 is not stopped, step S11
Then, the process proceeds to "YES", and in this case, since the brake device is not operating normally, "1" is set as the data code indicating that to 1 of the memory 51 shown in FIG. 5A.
The data is stored in the th data area (step S13). Also in this case, the contents previously stored in the 1st to 9th data areas of the memory 51 are shifted to the 2nd to 10th data areas of the memory 51 and stored before the above storage operation. Is configured to let.

Subsequently, it is judged whether or not an abnormality of the brake device has been detected continuously n times in the past (for example, 10 times in this embodiment) (step S14). In this case, it is determined whether or not all the data stored in the 10 data areas of the memory 51 are "1". Here, FIG. 5B
As shown in, when the abnormality of the brake device is detected 10 times in succession, the process proceeds to “YES” in step S14 to notify that the brake device is abnormal (step S15). In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, the brake abnormality indicator 37 of the operation panel 25 is turned on. At this time, it is also preferable to make the buzzer 49 ring in a ringing mode dedicated to the brake abnormality notification. Further, the brake abnormality indicator 37 which has been turned on once as described above is turned off when the power switch is turned off, but is turned on again when the power switch is turned on (turned on) next time. To turn off the brake abnormality indicator 37 that has been turned on once, the power plug on the main body of the fully automatic washing machine may be pulled out from the power outlet.

After the above-mentioned brake abnormality is notified, the process proceeds to step S16, and the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 is changed (set) so as to be low in the next and subsequent high-speed dehydration operations, and the dehydration operation time is extended. To do. in this case,
Specifically, high speed (about 950 rpm) to medium speed (about 80 rpm)
The rotation speed is changed to 0 rpm, and the dehydration operation time is extended by about 1 minute during the intermediate dehydration (during the rinse step) and by about 2 minutes during the final dehydration. The extension time is indicated by "+ α" in FIG. Then, after changing the dehydration rotation speed and extending the dehydration operation time as described above, the dehydration operation is terminated and the next step (operation) is performed, or the dehydration operation is temporarily stopped and waited. Or
Alternatively, the final dehydration operation is completed (the washing course is completed).

According to this embodiment having such a configuration, after the dehydration operation is temporarily stopped or ended, the rotation speed of the rotation tank 4 is detected when the set time t elapses after the braking of the rotation tank 4 is started. However, when the detected rotation speed exceeds a reference value for abnormality determination, for example, zero, an abnormality of the brake device is detected, and the abnormality of the brake device is lighted by the brake abnormality indicator 37. It is configured to notify. As a result, the user can clearly recognize the abnormality of the brake device, so that it is possible to call a service person for repair. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the washing machine from being continuously used while the braking force of the braking device is reduced. In particular, in the above-mentioned embodiment, since the abnormality can be detected when the set time t elapses from the start of braking, the abnormality can be detected earlier and the safety can be improved as compared with the conventional configuration. It is possible.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, when the abnormality of the brake device is detected, the rotation speed of the rotary tub 4 in the high speed dehydration operation after the next time is set low, specifically, it is changed from high speed to medium speed. Since the configuration is adopted, the rotary tank 4 can be stopped within the allowable time t even if the braking force of the brake device is reduced. In this case, if the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 is set low, the dehydration performance may decrease. On the other hand, in the above embodiment, by setting the dehydration operation time longer by about 1 to 2 minutes, the deterioration of the dehydration performance can be prevented as much as possible.

Further, in the above embodiment, the abnormality of the brake device is informed when the abnormality of the brake device is detected a set number of times, for example, 10 times in succession. After the occurrence of the abnormality in the brake device, if the brake device normally operates in the subsequent driving, the abnormality in the brake device is not notified. That is, since the user is informed of the abnormality of the braking device only when the braking force of the braking device is really reduced, the reliability of the abnormality notification can be increased.

In the above embodiment, the amount of laundry in the rotary tub 4 is detected, and the rotation speed of the rotary tub 4 is detected at the start of braking by the brake device (immediately before braking). According to Table 1 and the rotation speed of the rotary tub 4, the set time t from the start of braking to the detection of the rotation speed is configured to be variable, so that the abnormality of the brake device can be detected with higher accuracy. Is possible.

FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the present invention, and the difference from the first embodiment will be described. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the operation panel 2
The brake abnormality indicator 37 is not provided in FIG. And when notifying the abnormality of the brake device,
On the 2-digit number display 40 provided on the operation panel 25,
It is configured to display the error code in the display mode as shown in FIG. The number display 40 is also configured to display other error codes as shown in Table 2 below.

[0042]

[Table 2]

The configuration of the second embodiment other than that described above is the same as the configuration of the first embodiment. Therefore, also in the second embodiment described above, it is possible to obtain substantially the same operational effects as in the first embodiment.

In each of the above embodiments, the set time t is varied according to the amount of laundry and the rotation speed of the rotary tub 4 at the time of braking. However, instead of this, the amount of laundry or at the time of braking is started. The set time t may be varied according to only one of the rotation speeds of the rotary tank 4. Even with this configuration, it is possible to detect the abnormality of the brake device with sufficiently high accuracy. In each of the above embodiments, the rotation speed of the rotation tank 4 is detected when the set time t has elapsed from the start of braking of the rotation tank 4, and whether the detected rotation speed exceeds, for example, zero as the abnormality determination reference value. Although the configuration is such that the abnormality determination is made based on whether or not it is not limited to this, for example, the set time t
May be set to be short and the reference value for abnormality determination may be set to an appropriate value exceeding zero.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the abnormality of the brake device is notified when the abnormality of the brake device is detected 10 times in succession, but the invention is not limited to this. Alternatively, the configuration may be such that an abnormality is notified when an appropriate number of times of 11 times or more is detected.
Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 is detected by the rotation sensor 47, but instead of this,
A configuration may be adopted in which the induced voltage generated in the winding of the motor 17 is detected and the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 is detected based on this induced voltage. Further, when the motor 17 is a capacitor motor, the voltage across the terminals of the capacitor May be detected and the rotation speed of the rotary tank 4 may be detected based on the voltage between the terminals. Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, the invention is applied to a fully automatic washing machine, but it may be applied to a dehydrating machine or a two-tub type washing machine.

[0046]

As is apparent from the above description, the present invention detects the rotational speed of the rotary tank when a preset time has elapsed after the braking of the rotary tank is started, and the detected rotational speed is used for abnormality determination. Since the abnormality of the brake device is detected when it exceeds the reference value and the abnormality of the brake device is notified by the notification means, it is possible to continue to use the washing machine with the braking force of the brake device reduced. It is possible to prevent the above-mentioned problem and to perform an abnormality detection quickly.

Further, in the above structure, when the abnormality of the brake device is detected, the rotation speed of the rotary tank in the high speed dehydration operation after the next time is set low, so that the allowable time is reduced even if the braking force is decreased. The rotating tank can be stopped inside. In the case of this configuration, if the rotation speed of the rotary tank is set to be low, the dehydration performance may be deteriorated. However, by setting the dehydration operation time longer, the deterioration of the dehydration performance can be prevented as much as possible. it can. Furthermore, since it is configured to notify that the brake device is abnormal when the abnormality of the brake device is continuously detected a set number of times, after accidentally causing an abnormality of the brake device for some reason,
When the brake device normally operates in the subsequent driving, it is possible to prevent the abnormality of the brake device from being notified. Therefore, it is possible to inform the user of the abnormality of the brake device only when the braking force of the brake device is actually reduced.

Furthermore, the amount of laundry in the rotary tub is detected, and the length of the set time from the start of braking to the detection of the rotation speed is varied according to the detected amount of laundry,
If the set time is varied according to the rotation speed of the rotary tank detected at the start of braking, it is possible to detect the abnormality of the brake device with higher accuracy.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

[Figure 2] Vertical side view of fully automatic washing machine

FIG. 3 is a top view of the operation panel

FIG. 4 is a block diagram.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing data contents of a memory

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a washing process.

FIG. 7 is a view corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 is an outer box, 2 is an outer tank, 4 is a rotating tank, 5 is an agitator, 9 is a drain valve, 17 is a motor, 18 is a drive mechanism (brake device), 19 is a belt transmission mechanism, 22 is a lid, 25 Is an operation panel, 37 is a brake abnormality indicator (informing means), 40 is a numerical indicator (informing means), 45 is a control circuit (rotation speed detecting means, abnormality detecting means, operation control means, laundry amount detecting means), 47 Is a rotation sensor, 49 is a buzzer, and 51 is a memory.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A washing machine comprising a rotary tub which is rotatably rotatable at a high speed and centrifuge and dehydrates the laundry stored therein, and a brake device which brakes and stops the rotary tub, wherein Rotation speed detecting means for detecting the rotation speed, and after starting the braking of the rotation tank, the rotation speed of the rotation tank is detected when a set time has elapsed, and the detected rotation speed exceeds an abnormality determination reference value. A washing machine comprising: an abnormality detection unit that detects that the brake device is abnormal when the brake device is in an abnormal state; and a notification unit that notifies that the brake device is abnormal. 2. The washing machine according to claim 1, further comprising operation control means for setting a low rotation speed of the rotary tub in a high speed dehydration operation after the next time when it is detected that the brake device is abnormal. Machine. 3. When the brake device is detected to be abnormal, the operation control means is provided for setting the rotation speed of the rotary tank to be low and the dehydration operation time to be long in the subsequent high-speed dehydration operation. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the washing machine is a washing machine. 4. The informing means informs that the brake device is in an abnormal state when the abnormality in the brake device is continuously detected a set number of times.
The washing machine according to any one of 1. 5. A laundry amount detecting means for detecting the amount of laundry stored in the rotary tub, wherein the abnormality detecting means varies the set time according to the detected laundry amount. The washing machine according to any one of 1 to 4. 6. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality detecting means varies the set time according to the rotation speed of the rotary tub detected at the start of braking.