JPH11244587A - Solvent collecting type drying machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely collect solvent by providing means of measuring cooler exit temperature which is provided on the side of a cooler exit and measures the temperature of air passing a cooler and controlling air blow quantity of an air blowing means flowing air from a storing chamber and flowing air to a circulating air course based on the measured temperature. SOLUTION: When a drying operation of a cloth drying machine A is performed, a fan 10 is operated in collecting drying stroke at first and a rotating drum 4 is revolved. A cooler 13 and a heater 7 are turned on, a switching valve 18 is operated and an internal air course is made a circulating path. At this time, the fan 10 and the switching valve 18 are controlled according to the temperature of air measured by a temperature sensor 16. Namely, when the temperature of air is in a prescribed temperature range, the internal air course is made the circulating path, air flowing in this circulating path is heated by a heater 7 and clothes are dried, air is cooled by the cooler 13 and air is returned to the heater 7. Solvent stuck to washing is mixed with air, is flowed and is collected when air is cooled by the cooler 13.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a clothes dryer. In particular, the present invention relates to a solvent recovery type dryer for drying clothes washed with an organic solvent such as a petroleum-based solvent and capable of recovering a solvent in the air during drying.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a solvent recovery type dryer, air is heated by a heater, and the solvent adhering to clothing is vaporized by the heated air to dry the clothing. The air used for drying is exhausted outside the machine, or cooled by a cooler to recover the solvent in the air, and then re-circulated to the heater and used.

The flow of the air is switched according to the drying process and the temperature of the air. For example, when the temperature of the air is in a predetermined temperature range, for example, between 0 ° C and 20 ° C, the air is circulated. On the other hand, when the temperature of the air falls outside the predetermined temperature range, the air is exhausted outside the machine. This is because when air at 0 ° C. or lower passes through the cooler, frost is formed on the cooler, which is not preferable. Further, when the temperature of the air exceeds 20 ° C., the drying efficiency is reduced, and
This is because the risk of ignition increases.

[0004] Such a flow of air is generated by a blower. The blower has a blower fan that sends out air and a motor that drives the blower fan.
By the way, in the solvent recovery type dryer, the rotation speed of the motor of the blower is operated at a preset rotation speed, for example, a constant rotation speed irrespective of the above-mentioned air flow.

[0005]

In a solvent recovery type dryer, when air used for drying is exhausted outside the apparatus, the solvent mixed in the air is also exhausted outside the apparatus. . It is preferable that such solvent discharge is reduced and the solvent can be more reliably recovered. Further, in the solvent recovery type dryer as described above, drying efficiency tends to be lower when air is exhausted than when air is circulated. It is preferable that air can be efficiently dried also when exhausting air.

Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide a solvent recovery type dryer capable of reliably recovering a solvent. A second object of the present invention is to provide a solvent recovery type dryer capable of efficiently drying clothes.

[0007]

In order to achieve this object, a solvent recovery type dryer according to the first aspect of the present invention can recover an organic solvent when drying laundry washed with an organic solvent. A solvent recovery type drier, comprising: a storage chamber for storing laundry; a heater for heating air flowing into the storage chamber; a circulating air passage for guiding air flowing out of the storage chamber to the heater; A blower for flowing out and flowing to the circulation air passage, a cooler provided in the circulation air passage for cooling air passing through the air passage and condensing and recovering a solvent contained in the air, and a cooler outlet side. The air conditioner further includes a cooler outlet temperature measuring means provided to measure the temperature of the air passing through the cooler, and a blower control means for controlling a blowing amount of the blower means based on the measured temperature of the cooler outlet temperature measuring means. And

According to this configuration, the following operations are provided.
That is, when the amount of air blown by the air blowing means is increased, the air quickly flows through the cooler, and a decrease in the temperature of the air is suppressed.
On the other hand, when the amount of air blown by the air blowing means is reduced, the air slowly flows through the cooler, and the temperature of the air further decreases.
Thus, based on the temperature of the air that has passed through the cooler,
Since the cooling temperature of the air can be finely controlled, the solvent can be efficiently recovered. Furthermore, the air is heated by a heater, the solvent adhering to the laundry is vaporized, the air mixed with the solvent is cooled by a cooler, and the solvent is recovered.
The solvent can be more efficiently recovered.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the solvent recovery type dryer according to the first aspect, wherein the blowing control means performs strong blowing when the measured temperature is lower than a predetermined temperature. When the temperature is higher than a predetermined temperature, weak air is blown. According to this configuration, claim 1
The following effects are exhibited in addition to the effects of the described invention. That is, when the temperature is low, the strong air blow does not need to cool the air excessively, a large air volume can be obtained, and the clothes are efficiently dried by using the low temperature and low solvent concentration air. be able to. Also, when the temperature is high,
The air can be reliably cooled by the weak ventilation, and the solvent can be more efficiently recovered.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a solvent recovery type drier according to the first or second aspect, wherein an outside air is taken in and supplied to the heater, and flows out of the storage chamber. An exhaust port for exhausting air, an air path switching mechanism for switching between taking in air to be supplied to the heater from the inlet and guiding the air from the circulating air path, and an air path switching mechanism based on the temperature measured by the cooler outlet temperature measuring means. Switching control means for controlling the switching.

According to this structure, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect of the present invention, when the air flow is switched by the air path switching mechanism, the air is taken in from the inlet, and is passed through the heater and the accommodation chamber to the exhaust port. In this case, the cooler can be prevented from passing and circulating. Thus, when the temperature of the air is high, the air is flowed from the storage chamber to the exhaust port to prevent circulation, and the solvent may be ignited due to the high temperature and the circulation of the air mixed with the solvent. It can be reliably prevented. When the temperature is low, the air does not pass through the cooler, so that the cooler can be reliably prevented from freezing.

In addition, the path through which air flows differs in the air path switching mechanism, and the amount of air can be controlled according to this path. In this case, the efficiency of drying the laundry tends to be different depending on the route, so that the clothes can be efficiently dried with the blowing amount corresponding to the efficiency. For example, when the air to be supplied to the heater is taken in from the inlet, clothes can be efficiently dried with a large air volume. Also, when the solvent is collected by the cooler, the clothes can be efficiently dried by controlling the air flow according to the cooling capacity of the cooler.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the solvent recovery type dryer according to the third aspect, wherein when the measured temperature is within a predetermined range, the amount of air blown is controlled by air blowing control means, and the measured temperature is reduced. Is outside the predetermined range, switching control of the air path is performed by the switching control means. According to this configuration, in addition to the effect of the invention described in claim 3, when the measured temperature is within a predetermined range, the amount of air is controlled by controlling the air flow rate, so that the solvent can be more efficiently removed. Can be recovered. Also, if the air temperature is high even at low temperatures, such as at high temperatures,
The air can be flowed to the exhaust port by the switching control means, and the risk of ignition of the solvent can be reliably prevented. Further, when the temperature of the air drops even at a low temperature, even if the airflow is increased, the air conditioner can be switched by the switching control means to surely prevent the cooler from freezing.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a solvent recovery type drier according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the air blowing control means includes an inverter, and the air blowing means is driven by the inverter. It is characterized in that the air volume is controlled. According to this configuration, in addition to the operation of the invention described in any one of the first to fourth aspects, the air flow can be freely adjusted by the inverter.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the clothes dryer of 1st Embodiment of this invention in simplified form.

The clothes dryer A is used for dry cleaning. After the petroleum solvent organic solvent is removed from the dry-cleaned clothes by evaporating the clothes with warm air, the air containing the solvent is cooled. This is a solvent recovery type dryer that condenses and recovers the solvent.
The outer appearance of the clothes dryer A is constituted by a housing 1 having an opening 1a on the front surface and an openable / closable door 2 attached to the front opening 1a of the housing 1. A housing chamber 3 is formed in the housing 1 so as to be communicated with the outside through a front opening 1a. In the accommodation room 3,
A rotating drum 4 for storing clothes washed with a solvent is provided. Clothes are taken in and out of the rotating drum 4 through the front opening 1a of the housing 1 with the door 2 opened.

The rotary drum 4 is provided with its end face in front and back. The rotary drum 4 is attached to a rotary shaft of a drum motor 5 provided behind the rotary drum 4 and is rotatably supported in the storage chamber 3. A number of small holes 4a are formed on the peripheral surface of the rotating drum 4.
Are formed so that the air flowing in the storage chamber 3 passes through the rotary drum 4. Above the rotary drum 4, an air inlet 6 for allowing air to flow into the storage chamber 3 is formed. In the vicinity of the air inlet 6, a heater 7 for heating the air flowing into the accommodation chamber 3 via the air inlet 6 is provided. Further, below the rotary drum 4, an air outlet 8 for letting out the air that has flowed into the storage chamber 3 from the air inlet 6 is formed. A duct 9 is connected to the air outlet 8 as a circulating air passage for guiding air flowing out of the storage chamber 3 to the heater 7. The duct 9 is connected to the air inlet 6, and inside the housing 1, an internal air passage circulated by the housing chamber 3 and the duct 9 is formed.

In the duct 9 and in the vicinity of the air outlet 8, a fan 10 as a blowing means for sending air flowing from the air outlet 8 toward the air inlet 6 is provided. The fan 10 is attached to a rotation shaft of a fan motor 11 and is driven to rotate by a driving force of the fan motor 11. Fan 1
The lint filter 12 is located closer to the air outlet 8 than
Is provided. The lint filter 12 is for removing lint and the like contained in the air flowing out of the storage chamber 3.

In the duct 9, a cooler 13 for cooling the air sent to the air inlet 6 by the fan 10 is provided. Below the cooler 13,
A collecting pan 14 for collecting the solvent cooled and liquefied by the cooler 13 is provided. A drain port 15 for discharging the solvent collected in the recovery pan 14 to the outside is formed at the bottom of the recovery pan 14. Further, a cooling temperature sensor 16 for measuring the temperature of air immediately after passing through the cooler 13 is provided downstream of the cooler 13.

In the duct 9, an outlet chamber 9 a near the cooler 13 and an introduction chamber 9 b near the air inlet 6 are defined along the flow of air. ing. The outlet chamber 9a communicates with the outlet of the cooler 13, and the outlet chamber 9a and the introduction chamber 9b are partitioned by a partition wall 1c having a vent 1d communicating with each other.
The air flowing out of the cooler 13 flows from the outlet chamber 9a to the introduction chamber 9b through the ventilation hole 1d. In addition, an intake 17 is formed in the introduction chamber 9b so as to face the ventilation hole 1d. The intake 17 is provided with a switching valve 18 for opening and closing the intake 17. The switching valve 18 also functions as a shutter that can open and close the ventilation hole 1d, and can be closed and opened in conjunction with opening and closing of the intake 17.

The switching valve 18 is attached to a rod 20 driven by a solenoid 19. When the rod 20 contracts, the intake 17 is closed, and the ventilation hole 1d is opened (first state). Further, when the rod 20 extends, the intake 17 is opened and the vent hole 1d is closed (second state). Also,
An exhaust port 21 as an outlet for discharging air to the outside of the machine is provided at an upper portion of the duct 9 and at an upstream side of an air flow from an inlet of the cooler 13. This exhaust port 21 is always open.

In this clothes dryer, by switching the switching valve 18 as an air path switching mechanism, air can flow through the following internal circulation path or exhaust path through the internal air path configured as described above. That is, in the exhaust path, as shown in FIG. 2, the switching valve 18 is set to the second state, the outlet side of the cooler 13 is closed, and the air passing through the cooler 13 is stopped from being supplied to the heater 7. Instead, the intake port 17 is opened so that external air is supplied to the heater 7 and the air flowing out of the storage chamber 3 is exhausted from the exhaust port 21. In the circulation path, as shown in FIG. 1, the switching valve 18 is set to the first state, the intake 17 is closed, and the outlet side passage of the cooler 13 is opened instead, and the air passing through the cooler 13 is supplied to the heater 7. The air flowing out of the storage chamber 3 passes through the duct 9 and circulates in the internal air passage.

The switching valve 18 operates under the control of the control unit 60 as switching control means based on the measurement result of the temperature sensor 16 as cooling air outlet temperature measuring means for measuring the outlet temperature of the cooler 13. In this way, the switching valve 18 is set to the first state, and the fan 1
When 0 is driven, the air flows out of the storage chamber 3 through the air outlet 8 and the air in the duct 9 flows into the storage chamber 3 through the air inlet 6.
An air flow is formed in the housing 1 along the circulating internal air passage. The air flowing into the storage chamber 3 is heated by the heater 7 to become hot air, and flows into the rotary drum 4 through small holes 4 a formed on the peripheral surface of the rotary drum 4. In the rotating drum 4, the warm air evaporates the solvent adhering to the laundry while being stirred with the laundry adhering to the solvent. The vaporized solvent mixes with the air and flows to the air outlet 8 below the storage chamber 3. The air sent out by the fan 10 flows into the inlet of the cooler 13. At this time, since the introduction chamber 9b communicates with the exit chamber 9a to have a negative pressure, air is not discharged from the exhaust port 21. When the air mixed with the solvent is cooled by the cooler 13, the solvent mixed with the air is condensed and liquefied, and the liquefied solvent is collected at the bottom of the recovery pan 14 and taken out of the machine through the drain port 15.

When the switching valve 18 is set to the second state and the fan 10 is driven in the state of the exhaust path, air is taken in from the outside through the intake port 17 and flows into the introduction chamber 9b. Thereafter, as described above, the air is heated by the heater 7, the laundry is dried in the storage room 3, flows through the air outlet 8 to the duct 9, and the air is mainly discharged from the exhaust port 21.

In the present embodiment, the amount of air blown by the fan 10 is controlled by the control unit 60 as air blow control means based on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 as air cooler outlet temperature measurement means. The details will be described below. The fan 10 is driven to rotate by a fan motor 11. The fan motor 11 is connected to the inverter 61.
The inverter 61 controls the energization time to the fan motor 11 to control the energization amount under the control of the control unit 60. Thus, the rotation speed of the fan motor 11 can be freely controlled, and the amount of air blown by the fan 10 can be freely controlled. For example, when the rotation speed of the fan motor 11 is increased, the amount of blown air can be increased. When the rotation speed of the fan motor 11 is reduced, the amount of blown air can be reduced. Further, in the control by the inverter 61, since the energization time is controlled, the efficiency of power consumption is high. Note that the configuration for controlling the blowing amount is not limited to the inverter 61, and a known configuration can be used. Fan 10
Is driven, the air in the storage chamber 3 is sucked, and accordingly, the air passes through the heater 7.

The heater 7 is provided with an external heat source equipment (not shown).
From the heater 7 and the steam passes through the tube of the heater 7, so that the temperature of the air passing near the radiation fins provided in the tube can be increased. Heater 7
Is controlled by opening and closing a valve provided in the pipe to control the flow of steam. When the air is heated by the heater 7, the solvent adhering to the laundry can be efficiently vaporized when the air is stirred with the laundry in the rotating drum 4.

The cooler 13 is a heat exchanger as an evaporator for cooling the air in order to condense the solvent in the air and remove the solvent from the air, and a heat exchanger (not shown) as a condenser. It is connected. The pair of heat exchangers are connected so that a refrigerant can flow therethrough, and the refrigerant takes heat from air in an evaporator and evaporates to become a refrigerant gas, and this refrigerant gas is compressed by a compressor (not shown), The compressed refrigerant gas is configured to release heat from the condenser to the air outside the device and liquefy, and the liquefied refrigerant circulates to the evaporator. Cooler 13
Under the control of the control unit 60 is performed by opening / closing a valve provided in the refrigerant path or driving or stopping the compressor. When air passes through a heat exchanger as an evaporator and is cooled, a solvent mixed with the air condenses and liquefies.

In the clothes dryer, in the outlet chamber 9a,
The above-mentioned temperature sensor 16 provided as a temperature measuring means provided in the vicinity of the outlet of the cooler 13, and the above-mentioned control of both the air flow of the fan 10 and the operation of the switching valve 18 based on the measurement result by the temperature sensor 16. The control unit 60 is provided inside the housing 1. Control unit 60
Is a microcomputer (CP)
U), a RAM, a ROM, and the like as storage means. The CPU controls each unit based on a program or the like stored in a ROM or the like in advance. Further, the CPU can know the state of the switching valve 18 based on the contents of the flag set in the RAM. Further, the CPU includes a timer, and can control each unit by measuring an elapsed time by the timer.

The control unit 60 has a drum motor 5 for rotating the rotary drum 4 via a drive circuit (not shown).
And a solenoid 19 for driving the switching valve 18 are connected. Further, a valve and a compressor provided on the cooler 13 are connected in a controllable manner, and the cooler 13 can be driven or stopped. Further, a valve provided on the heater 7 is connected so as to be openable and closable, so that the heater 7 can be operated or stopped. The control unit 60 includes a fan motor 1 for rotating the fan 10 via a drive circuit (not shown).
The above-described inverter 61 for drivingly controlling the rotation speed of the motor 1 is connected, and the rotation speed can be adjusted to, for example, three stages of “weak”, “medium” and “strong” in the order of decreasing speed. The air volume can be reduced in this order.

The temperature sensor 16 is connected to the control unit 60. The temperature sensor 16 is, for example, the outlet chamber 9
The temperature of the air flowing near the outlet of the cooler 13 can be measured by including a thermistor disposed near the outlet of the cooler 13 of FIG. Next, the contents of control of the drying operation of the clothes dryer will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that in FIG. 3 and FIG.
0 is a fan, the rotary drum 4 is a drum, and the switching valve 18 is a valve.
Expressed as FF.

The drying operation is generally carried out in the following four steps: a recovery drying step, an exhaust drying step, a cool-down drying step, and a deodorizing step. In the recovery and drying process, first, the fan 10 is operated at the rotation speed “medium”, and the drum motor 5 is driven to rotate the rotating drum 4. The fan 10 and the rotating drum 4 are continuously operated during the drying operation. Further, the cooler 13 and the heater 7 are driven (O
N) (Step S1). Also, the switching valve 18
Is set to the first state, and the internal air path is set to the circulation path (step S2).

In the solvent recovery type dryer 1, the fan 10 is operated in accordance with the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16.
And the switching valve 18 is controlled as follows. First, the measured temperature is within the normal temperature range, for example,
The case where the temperature is 5 ° C. to 15 ° C. set as the predetermined temperatures T2 and T3 as described later will be described. In step S3, it is determined whether the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 is higher than a predetermined temperature T2, for example, 15 ° C. If the temperature is within the range of 5 ° C. to 15 ° C. (YES in step S3), then in step S6, the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 is changed to a predetermined temperature T3, for example, 5 ° C. Is determined. If the temperature is within the range of 5 ° C. to 15 ° C. (YES in step S6), the internal air path is set as the circulation path and the drying operation is performed as described above. At this time, the air flowing through the circulation path is heated by the heater 7 to dry the clothes,
After being cooled at 3, the heater returns to the heater 7 and repeatedly circulates through the internal air passage. The solvent adhering to the laundry flows mixed with the air, and when the air is cooled by the cooler 13, the solvent in the air is condensed and can be recovered. further,
The solvent can be reliably recovered while circulating air to repeatedly dry the clothes. In this way, the operation is continued for a predetermined time TA, for example, 17 minutes (step S11). In this step, most of the solvent evaporates, and thereafter, an exhaust drying step described later is executed.

Further, in the summer or the like, it is assumed that the temperature of the air rises during the drying operation, and the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 may exceed 15 ° C. in some cases. In this case (NO in step S3), the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to "low".
(Step S4). Thereby, fan 1
Since the rotation speed of 0 becomes slow and the amount of blown air decreases, the air slowly passes through the cooler 13 and the cooler 13 can cool the air better, so that the temperature of the air decreases. Therefore, an increase in the temperature of the air is suppressed. Next, step S
At 5, the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 is
A predetermined temperature T1 set to prevent the possibility of ignition of the solvent;
For example, it is determined whether the temperature is higher than 20 ° C. If the temperature is within the range of 15 ° C. to 20 ° C. (YE in step S5)
S, YES in step S6), the fan 10 is operated at the "low" rotation speed, and the drying operation is continued for a predetermined time TA, for example, 17 minutes by using the internal air path as a circulation path (step S11). .

Further, as described above, even in the case where the fan 10 is set to "weak" in step S4, it is assumed that the temperature of the air continues to rise. In such a case, when the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 becomes higher than the predetermined temperature T1 (NO in step S3, NO in step S5), the switching valve 18 is set to the second state, and the internal wind is changed. The path is an exhaust path (step S9), so that the risk of ignition of the solvent can be reliably prevented. At the same time, the cooler 13 is stopped, and the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to "high" (step S10). In this state, fresh air outside the machine enters the internal air passage through the intake 17 and is heated to dry the clothes. The solvent adhering to the laundry evaporates and is discharged out of the machine through the exhaust port 21 together with air. Then, the drying operation in this state is continued for a predetermined time TA, for example, 17 minutes (step S11).

Further, it is assumed that the temperature of the air decreases in winter or the like. When the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 is lower than 5 ° C. and higher than 0 ° C. (step S
In step S6, it is determined whether the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 is higher than a predetermined temperature T3, for example, 5 ° C. If the measured temperature is lower than 5 ° C. (NO in step S6), the fan 10 is operated at the “high” rotation speed (step S7). As a result, the amount of air blown by the fan 10 increases, and the air quickly passes through the cooler 13 to suppress the cooling. Therefore, the air is not excessively cooled, and a decrease in the temperature of the air is suppressed. next,
In step S8, it is determined whether the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 is lower than a predetermined temperature T4 set to prevent frost on the cooler 13, for example, 0 ° C. If the temperature is in the range of 5 ° C to 0 ° C (step S8
As described above, the drying operation is continued for a predetermined time TA, for example, 17 minutes by operating the fan 10 at the “high” rotation speed and using the internal wind path as the circulation path as described above (step S11).

Further, as described above, even if the rotational speed of the fan 10 is increased to "strong" in step S7, the temperature of the air may continue to decrease. In such a case,
When the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16 becomes lower than 0 ° C. (NO in step S6, NO in step S8), the switching valve 18 is set to the second state, and the internal air path is used as an exhaust path. (Step S9). At the same time, the cooler 13 is stopped, and the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to "high" (step S10). Then, the drying operation in this state is continued for a predetermined time TA, for example, 17 minutes (step S11).

During the operation for a predetermined time TA in step S11, the temperature measurement by the temperature sensor 16 is continued,
The control of the rotation speed of the fan 10 and the control of the switching valve 18 in accordance with the measured temperature are repeatedly and continuously performed. Thus, once the temperature of the internal air path is set to the range of 0 ° C. to 20 ° C. even after the internal air path is set as the exhaust path, the fan 10 is operated at the above-described rotation speed according to the temperature, and the internal air path is Is a circulation air path, and is a predetermined time TA, for example, 17
The operation will be continued for minutes.

The next exhaust drying step is performed in order to introduce fresh air outside the apparatus into the internal air passage to surely remove the solvent remaining on the clothes (step S12). In this process, the cooler 13 is stopped. Further, the switching valve 18 is in the second state, and the internal air path is an exhaust path. Air outside the machine passes through the inlet 17 and is taken into the introduction chamber 9b, and is heated by the heater 7, and then the laundry in the rotating drum 4 is dried. Thereafter, the air is discharged from the exhaust port 21 together with the vaporized solvent. The exhaust drying process is performed for a predetermined time, for example, 5 minutes.

The next cool-down drying step is performed to cool the clothes heated in the drying operation performed up to that time (step S13). In this step, the heater 7 is stopped and the cooler 13 is operated. Also in this cool-down drying process, the rotation speed of the fan 10 and the switching valve 18 are controlled according to the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 in the same manner as in steps S1 to S11 described above. For example, if the temperature is in the range of 5 ° C. to 15 ° C., the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “medium”, and the internal air path is set as a circulation path. As a result, the air flows into the rotating drum 4 while being cooled by the cooler 13, evaporates the solvent remaining in the laundry while cooling the laundry, and flows to the cooler 13 again. Here, the solvent is recovered and the air circulates repeatedly. The cool-down drying process is continued for a predetermined time, for example, two minutes. Also, if the temperature is 0
When the temperature is between 5 ° C. and 5 ° C., the internal air path is a circulation path, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is “strong”, and the operation is performed while collecting the solvent while preventing the cooler 13 from overcooling the air. Is performed. In addition, when the temperature is 15 ° C. to 20 ° C.,
The internal air path is a circulation path, and the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “weak”. The operation is performed while cooling the air, suppressing the rise in temperature, and collecting the solvent. When the temperature is higher than 20 ° C., the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “strong”, the internal air path is set as an exhaust path, and the risk of ignition of the solvent is reliably prevented. The laundry in the rotating drum 4 is cooled by the outside air. When the temperature is lower than 0 ° C., the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “strong”, the internal air path is set as an exhaust path, and the cooler 13 is reliably prevented from freezing. The laundry in the rotating drum 4 is cooled by air.

The next deodorization step is performed in order to discharge the air mixed with the solvent from the inside of the rotating drum 4 to remove the smell of the solvent from the dried clothes (step S14). In the deodorization process, the heater 7 and the cooler 13 are stopped, the switching valve 18 is in the second state, and the internal air path is an exhaust path. The deodorization process is performed for a predetermined time, for example, one minute, and thereafter, the drying operation ends, and the fan 10 and the rotating drum 4 are also stopped.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 60 as the air blowing control unit controls the air blowing amount of the fan 10 based on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16. Thus, when the rotation speed of the fan 10 is increased to “strong”, the amount of air blown can be increased, and air flows through the cooler 13 quickly,
A decrease in air temperature can be suppressed. On the other hand, when the amount of air blown by the fan 10 is reduced, the air slowly flows through the cooler 13 and the temperature of the air further decreases. Thus, in the recovery drying step and the cool down drying step, the cooler 1
Since the cooling temperature of the air can be finely controlled based on the temperature of the air passing through 3, the solvent can be efficiently recovered.

Further, in the recovery drying step, the air is heated by the heater 7 to evaporate the solvent adhering to the laundry, and the air mixed with the solvent is cooled by the cooler 13 to recover the solvent. The solvent can be efficiently recovered. In addition, the control unit 60 controls the fan 10 based on the measurement result of the temperature sensor 16 such that the air is blown strongly when the temperature is low, and weakly when the temperature is high.
With this, when the temperature is low, it is not necessary to cool the air excessively by strong air blowing, and furthermore, a large air volume can be obtained, and the air having a low temperature and a low solvent concentration can be used.
Clothes can be dried efficiently. In addition, when the temperature is high, the air can be reliably cooled by weak air blowing, and the solvent can be more efficiently recovered.

The controller 60 controls the switching of the switching valve 18 based on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 in the recovery drying step and the cool-down drying step, so that when the temperature of the air above the predetermined temperature T1 is high, As an exhaust path, air is flowed from the storage chamber 3 to the exhaust port 21 to prevent circulation, and reliably prevents the solvent from being ignited due to circulation of air having a high temperature and mixed with the solvent. be able to. When the temperature equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature T4 is low,
Since air does not pass through the cooler 13 as an exhaust path, freezing and frosting of the cooler 13 can be reliably prevented.

Further, the control unit 60 controls the predetermined temperatures T1 to T4.
The air flow rate is controlled within the temperature range described above, and when the temperature is out of the temperature range, the air path is switched and the exhaust path is used.Therefore, within a predetermined temperature range, the temperature of the air is controlled to more efficiently remove the solvent. Can be recovered. Also, if the air temperature is high even at low temperatures, such as at high temperatures,
The switching valve 18 allows air to flow to the exhaust port 21,
It is possible to reliably prevent the solvent from catching fire. In addition, when the temperature of the air decreases even at a low temperature or the like even if the air blowing is increased, it is possible to reliably prevent the cooler 13 from being frozen as an exhaust path.

Also, the fan 10 can be freely adjusted by the inverter 61 to adjust the amount of air blow, which is preferable for control. In addition, the control of the air temperature is performed by the cooler 1.
3 can be performed without control, so that the cooler 13 can be operated stably and continuously and efficiently, which is preferable. In particular, it is suitable when a direct expansion type refrigerator is applied to the cooler 13, and can have a cheap and simple structure. Further, since it is not necessary to turn the cooler 13 on and off, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the cooler 13 is stopped and the air temperature rises sharply when the air is passed through the cooler 13.

When the temperature is lower than 5 ° C., the fan 1
0 is “strong”, and when the temperature is higher than 5 ° C., the fan 10
Was set to “medium”. As described above, when the temperature is low, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is increased, so that the air flows quickly through the cooler 13 and does not need to be cooled excessively. Therefore,
Since it is possible to suppress the temperature of the air from lowering to the predetermined temperature T4, it is possible to prevent the cooler 13 from being used as an exhaust path in order to prevent the freezing of the cooler 13, and to prevent the exhaust of air mixed with the solvent. It can be collected more reliably.

When the temperature is lower than 15 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “medium”, and when the temperature is higher than 15 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “low”. When the temperature is lower than 5 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “strong”, and when the temperature is higher than 5 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “medium”. As described above, when the temperature is low, the rotation speed of the fan 10 can be increased to increase the amount of air flowing through the internal air passage, so that air having a low temperature and a low solvent concentration can be used. Clothes can be dried efficiently.

When the temperature is lower than 15 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “medium”, and when the temperature is higher than 15 ° C., the fan 10 is set to “weak”. As described above, when the temperature is high, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is reduced, so that the air slowly flows through the cooler 13 and is sufficiently cooled sufficiently to prevent the temperature from rising to the predetermined temperature T1. . As a result, it is possible to prevent the temperature from rising to a temperature at which the solvent may be ignited, so that it is possible to prevent the air mixed with the solvent from being exhausted, and it is possible to more reliably and efficiently recover the solvent.

Further, when the switching valve 18 is in the second state and the internal air path is used as the exhaust path, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is increased to “strong”, so that the air volume by the fan 10 can be increased. As a result, it is possible to increase the efficiency of drying the clothes. As a result, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the drying efficiency that is likely to occur when drying while exhausting the air from the exhaust port 21.

The same effect can be obtained not only in the recovery drying step but also in the cool down drying step. In addition,
In the present embodiment, the control of the rotation speed of the fan 10 in accordance with the temperature is performed in the recovery drying step and the cool-down drying step, but may be performed in either one of the steps.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the control contents. That is, the amount of air blown by the fan 10 can be controlled under the control of the control unit 60 depending on whether the internal air path is a circulation path or an exhaust path. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of control contents in the present embodiment. When the operation is started, the drum motor 5
Is driven, and the rotary drum 4 rotates. The rotating drum 4 is continuously rotating during the subsequent drying operation (step S51). In the recovery drying process, the cooler 13 and the heater 7 are driven (ON). Also, the switching valve 18
Is in the first state, and the internal air path is a circulation path.
Further, the fan 10 is operated at the rotation speed “medium” (step S52). In the recovery and drying process, the switching valve 18 and the like are controlled as follows in accordance with the temperature of the air measured by the temperature sensor 16. That is,
If the measured temperature is in the range of 0 ° C. to 20 ° C., the cooler 13 is driven and the switching valve 18
In this state, the internal air path is a circulation path. The air flowing through this circulation path is heated by the heater 7 to dry the clothes, cooled by the cooler 13, returned to the heater 7, and repeatedly circulated through the internal air passage. At this time, the solvent adhering to the laundry flows mixed with the air, and when the air is cooled by the cooler 13, the solvent in the air is condensed and can be recovered.

When the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 16 is out of the range of 0 ° C. to 20 ° C. in summer or the like, the cooler 13 is stopped and the switching valve 18 is set to the second state. The internal wind path is an exhaust path. In the exhaust path, fresh air outside the machine enters the accommodation room 3 through the intake 17 and is heated to dry the clothes. The solvent adhering to the laundry evaporates and is discharged out of the machine through the exhaust port 21 together with air.

Thus, the recovery and drying process is continued for a predetermined time, for example, 17 minutes. The next exhaust drying step is performed to introduce fresh air outside the machine into the internal air duct to ensure that any solvent still remaining on the clothing is removed. In this process, the cooler 13 is stopped. Further, the switching valve 18 is in the second state, and the internal air path is an exhaust path. The fan 10 is operated at the rotation speed “strong” (step S53). As described above, the fan 10 operated at “strong” takes the outside air at a large air volume through the inlet 17 into the introduction chamber 9 b, heats it with the heater 7, and then heats the inside of the rotary drum 4. Laundry can be efficiently dried. Thereafter, the air is discharged from the exhaust port 21 together with the vaporized solvent. The exhaust drying process is performed for a predetermined time, for example, 5 minutes.

The next cool-down drying step is performed to cool the clothes heated in the above-described step. In this step, the heater 7 is stopped and the cooler 13 is operated.
Further, the internal air path is set to the first path by the switching valve 18, and the fan 10 is operated at the rotation speed “medium” (step S54). In this cool-down drying process, the temperature sensor 16 is used similarly to the recovery drying process in step S52.
Each part is controlled according to the temperature measured by. For example, when the measured temperature is in the range of 0 ° C. to 20 ° C., the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “medium”, and the internal air path is a circulation path. As a result, the air flows into the rotating drum 4 in a state of being cooled by the cooler 13, evaporates the solvent remaining in the laundry while cooling the laundry, and flows to the cooler 13 again. Here, the solvent is recovered and the air is
Cycle repeatedly. When the temperature is outside the range of 0 ° C. to 20 ° C., the internal air path is used as an exhaust path, and the laundry in the rotating drum 4 is cooled by the air outside the machine. The cool-down drying process is continued for a predetermined time, for example, two minutes.

The next deodorization step is performed in order to discharge the air mixed with the solvent from the inside of the rotary drum 4 to remove the smell of the solvent from the dried clothes. In the deodorization process, the heater 7 and the cooler 13 are stopped, and the switching valve 18
State, the internal air path is an exhaust path, and the fan 10
Is set to "strong" (step S54). As described above, since the fan 10 is operated at “strong”, it is possible to take in a large amount of air from outside the machine and efficiently deodorize the smell of clothes. The deodorization process is performed for a predetermined time, for example,
Performed for 1 minute.

According to the present embodiment, the following effects are obtained. That is, when the air path of the internal air path is different, the drying efficiency tends to be different accordingly. That is, in the exhaust path, if the rotation speed of the fan 10 can be increased and a large amount of air can be blown, the clothes can be efficiently dried. On the other hand, in the circulation path, unless the air is cooled by the cooler 13, it is not necessary to blow a large amount of air, and the fan 10 is operated at a predetermined rotation speed so as to obtain an air flow according to the cooling capacity of the cooler 13. By doing so, the clothes can be efficiently dried. Therefore, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “strong” in the exhaust path, and is increased from the “medium” in the circulation path to obtain a large amount of air. Can be dried.

In the recovery drying step, first, the clothes can be dried while recovering most of the solvent by using the internal air path as a circulation path. In the subsequent exhaust drying step, the fan 10 can be used as an exhaust path. Since the rotation speed is increased and a large amount of air is taken in from outside the machine, the remaining solvent can be efficiently removed. Therefore, the clothes can be efficiently dried, and the solvent can be reliably recovered.

Further, when the circulation path is set, the fan 1
The rotation speed “medium” of 0 is set so that the air can be efficiently cooled by the cooler 13 when the fan 10 is operated at this rotation speed. Thereby, even if it is set as a circulation path, it can be dried efficiently. In the second embodiment of the present invention, the rotation speed of the fan 10 is set to “high” in the exhaust drying process and the deodorizing process, but may be performed in any one of the processes. In addition, it is only necessary that the air flow rate of the exhaust path is larger than the air flow rate of the fan 10 when the internal air path is the circulation path.

In each of the above embodiments, the fan 1
In the case of 0, the speed can be adjusted in three stages, but is not limited to this. For example, it is more preferable that the adjustment can be finely performed in four or more steps or steplessly. Further, if the second embodiment and the first embodiment are partial, they can be applied in two stages. The point is that the fan 10 only needs to be able to control the air volume.

In addition, various design changes can be made without changing the gist of the present invention.

[0062]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the following effects can be obtained. That is, the blower control means controls the blown air amount of the blower means based on the measured temperature of the cooler outlet temperature measuring means. As a result of further lowering the temperature, the cooling temperature of the air can be finely controlled, and the solvent can be efficiently recovered. Further, the solvent can be more efficiently recovered by the heater and the cooler.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, that is,
When the temperature is low, the air is blown strongly, and when the temperature is high, the air is weakly blown.When the temperature is low, it is possible to efficiently dry the clothes with a large air volume while preventing excessive cooling of the air with a strong air flow. In some cases, the air can be surely cooled by a weak blow to collect the solvent more efficiently.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, the switching control means controls the switching of the air passage switching mechanism based on the temperature measured by the cooler outlet temperature measuring means. Therefore, at the time of high temperature, the danger of ignition of the solvent can be reliably prevented, and at the time of low temperature, the cooler can be reliably prevented from freezing. In addition, when the amount of air is controlled according to the air path by the air path switching mechanism, the clothes can be efficiently dried.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the third aspect of the invention, the amount of air to be blown is controlled within a predetermined temperature range, and when the temperature falls outside the temperature range, the air path is switched. Within the predetermined temperature range, the solvent can be more efficiently recovered by controlling the temperature of the air.When the temperature falls outside the temperature range, the solvent may be ignited at a high temperature or the cooler at a low temperature. The possibility of freezing can be reliably prevented.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, it is preferable that the air flow can be freely adjusted by the inverter.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a schematic configuration of a solvent recovery type dryer according to a first embodiment of the present invention, showing a case where an internal air passage is a circulation passage.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of a schematic configuration of the solvent recovery type drier of FIG. 1, showing a case where an internal air passage is an exhaust passage.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of control contents of the solvent recovery type dryer of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of control contents of a solvent recovery type drier according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A Clothes dryer (solvent recovery type dryer) 3 Storage room 7 Heater 9 Duct (circulation air path) 10 Fan (blowing means) 13 Cooler 16 Temperature sensor 17 Inlet 18 Switching valve (air path switching mechanism) 21 Exhaust port 60 Control unit (blowing control means, switching control means) 61 Inverter

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A solvent recovery type drier capable of recovering an organic solvent when drying laundry washed with an organic solvent, comprising: a storage chamber for storing laundry; and an air flowing into the storage chamber. A heater for heating, a circulating air path for guiding air flowing out of the storage chamber to the heater, a blowing means for discharging air from the storage chamber to flow to the circulating air path, and air provided in the circulating air path and passing through the air path Cooler for condensing and recovering the solvent contained in the air by cooling the cooler, cooler outlet temperature measuring means provided on the cooler outlet side for measuring the temperature of the air passing through the cooler, and cooler outlet temperature measuring means And a blower control unit for controlling a blower amount of the blower unit based on the measured temperature of the solvent recovery dryer. 2. The solvent recovery type drier according to claim 1, wherein the blower control means performs a strong blow when the measured temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature, and performs a weak blow when the measured temperature is higher than the predetermined temperature. Characteristic solvent recovery dryer. 3. The solvent recovery type dryer according to claim 1, wherein an intake for taking in external air and supplying the air to the heater, an exhaust port for exhausting air flowing out of the storage chamber, and air supplied to the heater. Air passage switching mechanism for switching between taking in air from the inlet and leading from the circulation air passage, and switching control means for controlling switching of the air passage switching mechanism based on the temperature measured by the cooler outlet temperature measuring means. Solvent recovery type dryer characterized by the above-mentioned. 4. The solvent recovery type dryer according to claim 3, wherein when the measured temperature is within a predetermined range, the amount of air blown is controlled by air blowing control means, and when the measured temperature is out of the predetermined range, air flow is controlled by switching control means. A solvent recovery type dryer characterized by performing a path switching control. 5. The solvent recovery type drier according to claim 1, wherein the blower control means includes an inverter, and the blower control means controls a blown amount of the blower means by the inverter. Dryer.