JPH0994212A - Dish washer and dryer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a dish washer and dryer that performs economical and also optimum drying by detecting the temperature of steam evaporating from tableware and, on the basis of the detected value, controlling the drying process. SOLUTION: A dry-bulb temperature detecting means 10 compris a thermister, as is a wet-bulb temperature detecting means 11 which is embedded in a thin block of highly ventilating and hygroscopic urethane fiber. When entering the drying process, energizing starts for a heating means 6 for heating washing water and drying air and for an air intake means 5, so that the inside of the housing is heated with the inside air replaced with the outside air through the air intake means 5. Simultaneously, humidity detection for discriminating the completion of drying is carried out through an output Td of the dry-bulb temperature detecting means 10 and an output Tw of the wet-bulb temperature detecting means 11. The humidity thus determined is inputted in a means for detecting completion of drying, compared with a threshold value, and discriminated as the completion of drying if the humidity is below the threshold value, so that a signal is outputted to indicate the completion of drying.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a dishwasher / dryer used at home or in industrial use.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional dishwasher / dryer, a user can select from a plurality of predetermined times regardless of the amount of dishes and the washing time can be set before the equipment is driven.
After deciding the rinsing time and drying time, wash, rinse,
It was to be dried.

In the case of a fully automatic dishwasher / dryer, the amount of dishes is determined in the washing process, and the washing process, the rinsing process and the drying process are controlled according to the amount of the dishes. In addition, recently, there is also one in which a temperature sensor detects the temperature inside the refrigerator and the drying time is controlled by the change.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned method, that is, the method of cleaning in a predetermined stroke, since the set time in each stroke is determined regardless of the amount of dishes, It was difficult to set the time for each stroke according to the washing and drying conditions of the dishes. Especially in the drying process, if the drying process is performed irrespective of the dry state, the drying time will be too long and the temperature of the tableware will rise abnormally, making it difficult to remove the tableware after the drying process, or the tableware may be damaged due to deterioration. There are cases where inconveniences such as doing occur. On the other hand, when the drying time is too short, there is a problem that even after the drying process is completed, water remains in the inside of the glass cup, the depression of the tableware, etc., and the drying is not sufficient.

In addition, by estimating the amount of dishes in the washing process,
In the method of controlling the drying process according to the value, the amount of dishes cannot be determined when only the drying process is used, and it is necessary to have the user manually determine the amount of dishes in the washing process. It was Furthermore, in this case, the control of the drying process will be performed with reference to the amount of tableware estimated in the cleaning process, but this method cannot cope with the difficulty of drying due to the material, shape, arrangement, etc. of the tableware, and an appropriate control Was difficult to do.

Further, conventionally, when it was attempted to monitor the state of the inside of the refrigerator during the drying process, the temperature was often selected as a parameter. This is because most of the humidity sensors currently used are semiconductor humidity sensor elements, which have a problem that their water resistance is weak and their characteristics are easily deteriorated due to dew condensation or the like. However, when the temperature is used as a parameter for monitoring the dry state of the tableware in the refrigerator, there are many disturbance factors other than the moisture adhering to the tableware,
There was often a gap between the estimated state and the actual state of the tableware.

A first object of the present invention is to provide a humidity sensor that can be installed in a dishwasher / dryer, and to accurately know the dry state in the refrigerator by the output of the humidity sensor to control the drying process. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a dishwasher that performs economical and optimum drying.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a humidity sensor adapted to the internal condition of the dishwasher and to accurately know the dry condition in the refrigerator by the output of this humidity sensor and control the drying process. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a dishwasher that performs economical and optimum drying.

A third object of the present invention is to provide an economical and optimum tableware dryer by accurately knowing the dry state in the refrigerator by the output of the humidity sensor and accurately determining the end of drying. Is to provide.

A fourth object of the present invention is to accurately determine the dry state of the inside of the refrigerator from the output of the humidity sensor and the like without being influenced by the fluctuation of the sensor output due to the switching operation of the heater or the like, and determine the end of drying. By doing so, it is an object to provide a coarse tableware dryer that is economically and optimally dried.

A fifth object of the present invention is to economically and accurately determine the dry state in the refrigerator from the output of the humidity sensor and the like without being affected by changes in the surrounding environment and to judge the dry end.
And it is to provide a tableware coarse dryer for optimal drying.

[0012]

The first means for achieving the first object of the present invention is to provide a humidity detecting means, a dry-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting an air temperature in the refrigerator, and a humidity detecting means. There is provided a dishwasher / dryer including a wet-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the wet-bulb and a humidity calculating means for calculating the humidity from the outputs of the dry-bulb temperature detecting means and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means.

The first means for achieving the second object of the present invention is that the humidity detecting means is a dry-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the air temperature in the refrigerator, and the humidity detecting means is automatically kept constant during the washing process of the dishwasher. By a wet bulb configured to contain water, a wet bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the wet bulb, and a humidity calculating means for calculating humidity from the outputs of the dry bulb temperature detecting means and the wet bulb temperature detecting means. Provide a configured dishwasher.

A second means for achieving the second object of the present invention is that the humidity detecting means is the dry-bulb temperature detecting means installed at a position most correlated with the dryness of the tableware in the refrigerator. Provided is a dishwasher including humidity calculation means for calculating humidity from the output of a wet bulb temperature detection means.

The means for achieving the third object of the present invention is that the drying completion detecting means determines that the drying is completed when the output of the detection value of the humidity detecting means is equal to or less than a threshold value, and the process managing means performs the drying. Provided is a dishwasher / dryer that outputs an end signal and operates to end the drying process.

The means for achieving the fourth object of the present invention is that the drying end detecting means is an integral calculating means for performing an interval integral calculation of the detection value of the humidity detecting means, and the output from the integrating calculating means is below a threshold value. A dishwasher / dryer is provided that operates to terminate the drying process by outputting a drying completion signal to the process control means when it is determined that the drying process has ended.

The means for achieving the fifth object of the present invention is, the drying end detecting means, an integral calculating means for performing an interval integral calculation of the detected value of the humidity detecting means, and a temporary storage for storing the output from the integral calculating means. The storage unit compares the output from the integral calculation unit with the value stored in the temporary storage unit to estimate the humidity change in the cleaning tank, the humidity change becomes equal to or less than a threshold value, and the detected value of the humidity detection unit. When the value becomes less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined that the drying is completed, a drying end signal is output to the process management means, and a dishwasher / dryer that operates to end the drying process is provided.

[0018]

Function A commonly used hygrometer is a wet and dry bulb type. This is a product that calculates the humidity based on the difference between the dry-bulb temperature and the wet-bulb temperature, and the evaporation amount of water in the air (d
It applies that x) is determined by the saturated vapor pressure (Ps) of air and the vapor pressure (Pw) of water. ((1)
The following is a brief description of the principle of a dry-wet bulb type hygrometer with reference to FIG. Consider the case where water is present in unsaturated air. As shown in Fig. 1, water receives heat from the air and the water temperature (T
w) rises by the amount of heat received (dQ). (See equation (2)) dx / dt = k * S * (Ps-Pw) (1) k, k ': Constant dQ / dt = k' * S * (Td-Tw) (2) S: Water surface Water evaporates (dx) due to the increase in surface area temperature, but at this time water consumes the amount of heat received as heat of evaporation. (See equation (3)) dQ / dt = (dx / dt) * r (3) Therefore, in unsaturated air, the water temperature is always below the air temperature. If there is no water evaporation on the water surface, the water temperature should be equal to the air temperature. However, in practice, water evaporates for the above reason, and therefore the water temperature becomes lower than the air temperature by the amount of heat of evaporation. The evaporation amount of water is determined by the ratio of the water vapor pressure in the air to the saturated water vapor pressure at the air temperature. The ratio of the water vapor pressure in the air to the saturated water vapor pressure of the air temperature is the relative humidity ((4)
Formula).

RH = Pw / Ps (4) From the equations (1) to (4), the following equation holds.

RH = 1-k '* (Td-Tw) / (Ps * k) This temperature difference (Td-Tw) is used to measure the relative humidity.

In the dishwasher, in the case of a fully automatic course where washing to drying is fully automatic, the drying process starts immediately after rinsing the dishes with high-temperature water in the rinsing process. The inside of the cabinet is hot and humid. Further, when the drying is started, the temperature inside the refrigerator is raised by the heater, and the evaporation of moisture in the refrigerator is started. Due to the exhaust air from the fan, the humidity drops slowly during this period, and eventually reaches a steady state. When this steady state is reached, the inside of the refrigerator has been dried. The humidity in this steady state is almost the same if the outside air temperature and the outside air humidity are the same. Therefore, the humidity in this steady state is set as a threshold value, and when the humidity becomes less than or equal to this threshold value, it is determined that the drying is completed. This eliminates wasted drying time, and a dry state above a certain level can always be obtained.

The first means of the present invention provides a humidity sensor that can be installed in the dishwasher / dryer, and the output of the humidity sensor can be used to accurately know the dry state of the dish and control the drying process. It is possible to provide a dishwasher that performs economical and optimum drying.

The second means of the present invention provides a humidity sensor adapted to the internal condition of the dishwasher, and the output of the humidity sensor can be used to accurately know the dry condition in the refrigerator and control the drying process. It is possible to provide a dishwasher that performs economical and optimum drying.

The third means of the present invention provides a tableware dryer for economically and optimally drying by accurately knowing the dry state in the refrigerator by the output of the humidity sensor and determining the dry end. You can do it.

The fourth means of the present invention is to accurately determine the dry state in the refrigerator from the output of the humidity sensor and the like without being influenced by the fluctuation of the sensor output due to the switching operation of the heater or the like, and determine the end of drying. Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a dish-drying dryer that economically and optimally performs drying.

The fifth means of the present invention is economical, by accurately knowing the dry state in the refrigerator from the output of the humidity sensor and the like without being affected by changes in the surrounding environment and determining the end of drying.
And it is to provide a tableware coarse dryer for optimal drying.

[0027]

【Example】

(Embodiment 1) An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
Washing tank 2 for washing dishes and dish basket 3 for storing dishes
A water supply means 4 for supplying wash water, an intake means 5 for taking in dry air, and a heating means 6 for heating wash water or dry air.
A circulation pump 7 for circulating the cleaning water, a cleaning nozzle 8 for ejecting the cleaning water, a drainage means 9 for draining the cleaning water, a dry-bulb temperature detecting means 10 installed on the cleaning tank ceiling, and a wet bulb. It is composed of a temperature detection means 11, a temperature detection means 12 for detecting the temperature of the bottom of the cleaning tank, and a control means 13 composed of a microcomputer and an electronic circuit for controlling the actuators and the detection means. The control means 13
A microcomputer 16 for controlling an actuator control circuit 14 for controlling each of the actuators 4 to 9 and a temperature detection circuit 15 for controlling a temperature detection means and processing a signal.
It is constituted by.

As shown in FIG. 5, the microcomputer 1
Reference numeral 6 denotes a humidity calculating means 17 for calculating the humidity inside the refrigerator by a signal from the temperature detecting circuit 15, and a drying end judging means 18 for judging the drying end based on the humidity calculated by the humidity calculating means.
And a stroke management means 19 for managing and controlling each stroke of the dishwasher and a stroke storage means 20 for storing control parameters such as time and temperature of each stroke of the dishwasher.

As shown in FIG. 4, the dry-bulb temperature detecting means and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means are each composed of a thermistor, and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means is embedded in a thin mass of urethane fibers having high air permeability and high hygroscopicity. ing. This urethane fiber contains a certain amount of water, and is always in a wet state when detecting humidity. The wet bulb temperature detection means detects the temperature of this water. The dry-bulb temperature detecting means is installed in the immediate vicinity of the wet-bulb temperature detecting means, and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means detects the temperature of the exposed air.

The operation of the present invention, the basic operation flow is shown in FIG.
It will be explained together. First, when a user sets dishes in the dish basket 3 and puts them in the main body 1 and then turns on the power, the dishwasher automatically enters the washing process. Then, after a rinsing step and finally draining, the drying step is started. When entering the drying process as shown in FIG. 7, first, the heating means 6 and the intake means 5 are energized to heat the inside of the refrigerator, and the air in the refrigerator is replaced by the outside air by the intake means 5. When the two means are energized, the process of detecting the end of drying is started. During the drying completion detection process, the heating means control process interrupts at regular intervals, and the heating means control process controls the temperature of the heating means as shown in FIG. When the end of drying detection is completed, the heating means 6 and the intake means 5 are energized until the end of drying time. During this time, the heating means control routine interrupts at regular intervals to detect the heater temperature and control the temperature inside the refrigerator.

Next, the operation of determining the end of drying will be described with reference to FIG. First, the humidity detection method will be described. In the humidity detection in the present embodiment, the humidity calculating means calculates the humidity by the equation (1) based on the output Td of the dry bulb temperature means and the output Tw of the wet bulb temperature means.

RH = 1-K / Ps * (Td-Tw) (1) where Ps is the saturated vapor pressure at the air temperature Td. The saturated vapor pressure changes depending on the temperature, and is generally obtained by referring to the saturated vapor pressure table, but in the present embodiment, it was obtained by substituting it into an approximate expression.

The humidity calculated by the above method is input to the drying end judging means and compared with the threshold value RH0. When it is equal to or less than the threshold value, it is determined that the drying is completed, and the drying completion determining means outputs a drying completion signal to the stroke managing means.

In this embodiment, the dry-bulb temperature detecting means and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means are constituted by a thermistor, which detects a temperature in the range of 0 ° C to 100 ° C such as a thermocouple. It is possible to use temperature sensing means that can do things.

(Embodiment 2) One embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.
A description will be given based on 11, 12, and 13. The basic configuration of the dishwasher of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 11, the microcomputer 26 has a temperature detection circuit 2
Humidity detecting means 27 for detecting humidity by output from 5
An integral calculation means 28 for calculating the interval integral of the detected humidity, a data storage means 29 for storing humidity data in a certain interval, a dry end determination means 30 for making a dry end determination based on the integrated value, and dishwashing / drying. Manage each stroke of the machine,
The process management unit 31 controls the process, and the process storage unit 32 stores control parameters such as time and temperature of each process of the dishwasher / dryer.

The dry-bulb temperature detecting means 21 and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means 22 are each formed of a thermistor, and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means is embedded in a thin mass of fibers having high air permeability and water supply. This fiber contains a certain amount of water,
It is always wet when detecting humidity. The wet-bulb temperature detecting means is installed right under the water supply port, and the dry-bulb temperature detecting means is installed right next to it.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The basic operation of the dishwasher is the same as that of the first embodiment. However, before starting the drying process, open the water inlet for a minute
Add a small amount of water to the wet bulb and then start the drying process.

The operation for determining the end of drying will be described. The humidity calculating means calculates the humidity in the same manner as in the first embodiment by the inputs from the dry bulb temperature detecting means and the wet bulb temperature detecting means. The calculated humidity is input to the integration calculation means, and the integration calculation means calculates the sum of the humidity value and the input humidity for a certain period t (seconds) stored in the data storage means and obtains the interval integration value. To do. The section integration value of this humidity is input to the drying end determination means, the section integration value and the threshold value are compared, and if the section integration value is less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined that the drying is completed, and a signal indicating the completion of drying is output to the process control means. However, the process control means receives this signal,
Finish the drying process.

(Embodiment 3) An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The basic configuration of the dishwasher of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 14, the microcomputer 33 includes a humidity detecting means 34 for detecting the humidity based on the output from the temperature detecting circuit 25, an integration calculating means 35 for calculating an average of the detected humidity intervals, and humidity data for a certain interval. Data storage means 36, a temporary storage means 37 for storing the integrated value of the humidity calculated by the integral calculation means, a dry end determination means 38 for making a dry end determination based on the integrated value, and each of the dishwasher / dryer. The process management unit 39 manages and controls the process, and the process storage unit 40 stores control parameters such as time and temperature of each process of the dishwasher / dryer.

The dry-bulb temperature detecting means 21 and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means 22 are each constituted by a thermistor, and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means is embedded in a thin mass of fibers having high air permeability and water supply. This fiber contains a certain amount of water,
It is always wet when detecting humidity. The wet-bulb temperature detecting means is installed right under the water supply port, and the dry-bulb temperature detecting means is installed right next to it.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described. The basic operation of the dishwasher is the same as that of the second embodiment.

The operation for determining the end of drying will be described. The humidity calculating means calculates the humidity in the same manner as in the first embodiment by the inputs from the dry bulb temperature detecting means and the wet bulb temperature detecting means. The calculated humidity is input to the integration calculation means, and the integration calculation means calculates the sum of the humidity value and the input humidity for a certain period t (seconds) stored in the data storage means and obtains the interval integration value. To do. The interval integrated value of this humidity is input to the drying end determination means, the difference between the interval integrated value and the previously calculated interval integrated value is calculated, and this difference is less than or equal to the difference threshold, and the interval integrated value calculated this time. Is less than or equal to the threshold of the interval integral,
It is determined that the drying is completed, and a signal indicating that the drying is completed is output to the stroke managing means, and the stroke managing means receives this signal and terminates the drying stroke.

[0044]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a dishwasher which performs economical and optimum drying by monitoring the drying process based on the output of humidity in the refrigerator, change in output, and the like. . By observing the state of evaporation of water from the tableware depending on the humidity in the refrigerator, it is possible to determine the drying time in accordance with the way of putting the tableware, the material, and the like.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the principle of the present invention.

[Fig. 2] A graph of an example of a change in humidity in a dishwasher / dryer.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the humidity detecting means of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a control circuit according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the basic operation of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the drying process of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the heating means control process of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of the dry end determination according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram of second and third embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of a control circuit according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart of the drying process of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of the dry end determination according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a configuration diagram of a control circuit according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart of determination of completion of drying according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 main body 2 washing tank 3 tableware basket 4 water supply device 5 intake device 6 heating device 7 circulation pump 8 washing nozzle 9 drainage pump 10 first temperature detecting means 11 second temperature detecting means 12 control circuit

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A washing tank for washing dishes, heating means for heating washing water and dry air, a washing nozzle for jetting washing water, a circulation pump for circulating the washing water, and a drainage pump for draining the washing water. And an intake means for taking in dry air from the outside of the machine, a humidity detecting means for detecting the humidity of water vapor evaporated from the dishes, and a control circuit for controlling these. The control circuit includes a heating device, a cleaning nozzle, and a circulation. An actuator control means for controlling the pump, the drainage pump, the water supply device and the intake device, and a stroke control means for controlling the washing / drying step,
A dishwasher / dryer comprising storage means for storing a process, and drying end determination means for determining the end of drying based on the detection value of the humidity detection means. 2. The humidity detecting means detects dry-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of air inside the chamber, wet-bulb containing moisture composed of a material having excellent hygroscopic and breathable properties, and temperature of the wet-bulb. 2. The dishwasher / dryer according to claim 1, further comprising: wet-bulb temperature detecting means, and humidity calculating means for calculating humidity from outputs of the dry-bulb temperature detecting means and the wet-bulb temperature detecting means. 3. The temperature detecting means is a dry-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the air temperature in the refrigerator, and a wet-type structure which is installed in the vicinity of the water supply port of the dishwasher to automatically supply water before the drying process. The sphere, a wet-bulb temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the wet-bulb, a dry-bulb temperature detecting means, and a humidity calculating means for calculating humidity from an output of the wet-bulb temperature detecting means. Dishwasher. 4. The drying completion detecting means determines that the drying is completed when the output of the detection value of the humidity detecting means is below a threshold value, outputs a drying completion signal to the process managing means, and completes the drying process. The dishwasher / dryer of claim 1, wherein the dishwasher / dryer operates as follows. 5. The drying completion detecting means determines an end of drying when the output from the integration calculating means is an integral calculating means for performing an interval integration calculation of the detection value of the humidity detecting means, The dishwasher / dryer according to claim 1, wherein a drying end signal is output to the process control means to operate so as to end the drying process. 6. The dry end detecting means includes an integral calculating means for performing an interval integral calculation of a detected value of the humidity detecting means, a temporary storage means for storing an output from the integral calculating means, and an output from the integral calculating means. And the value stored in the temporary storage means are compared to estimate the humidity change in the cleaning tank, and when the humidity change is below the threshold value and the detection value of the humidity detection means is below the threshold value, the drying is completed. The dishwasher / dryer according to claim 1, wherein the dishwasher / dryer is operated so as to make a determination and output a drying end signal to the process control means to end the drying process.