JPS61172591A - Washing / machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to a washing machine that performs washing by automatically dispensing liquid detergent according to the level of dirt selected arbitrarily or according to the amount of cloth, and particularly relates to The purpose is to automatically dispense the amount at the appropriate timing.

[Background of the invention]

JP-A No. 53-35272 also describes the automatic addition of detergent, but today, as washing machines are equipped with microcomputers and electronic control is progressing, it is possible to add more finely and appropriately. A washing machine that is not easy to use will not be easy to use unless it is automatically loaded at the right time. By adjusting the amount of water used and the temperature of the water used differently, it is necessary to create a washing machine that can maintain stable functions at all times with little variation in cleaning efficiency.

[Purpose of the invention]

The purpose of the present invention is to improve the automatic detergent injection amount and timing according to the degree of dirt, the key selected when entering the washing process depending on the laundry item, and the input, and dispense the necessary amount of detergent that precisely matches the conditions. We provide washing machines that do the following:

[Summary of the invention]

Conventionally, this was done by one hand without being done much in the washing machine itself. "Pre-washing" and "soaking washing" can be programmed in the washing machine, and at this time, the appropriate amount and timing of automatic injection of detergent can be combined, depending on the amount of laundry, and key-in to the degree of dirt. The amount of detergent added is finely adjusted and controlled.

[Embodiments of the invention]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Reference numeral 1 denotes an outer frame, and 2 an outer tank for storing water for washing, which has an outwardly protruding support part 2a, to which a suspension rod 7 is attached via a spring 9.
is engaged. The suspension rod 7 has a lower suspension rod holder 7a and an upper suspension rod holder 8 at both ends. Provides elastic support.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a washing tub, which also serves as a dehydration tub and has small holes around its outer periphery.

12 is a stirring wing that stirs the laundry for washing;
Reference numeral 16 is connected to the drive unit 15 by a shaft. The drive section 15 has a speed reduction mechanism and a clutch section, and separates the rotation of the stirring blade 12 and the rotation of the washing tub 11. 15a, 1
A pulley 4a transmits rotational force from a motor 14 as a drive source through a belt 17. 13 is the center base, motor 14. It supports the drive parts 15 and is supported by the lower part of the outer tank 2. 2b is a guide part that protrudes from the lower part of the outer tank and guides a water level sensor 6 that connects the tube 5 and checks the amount of water supplied by replacing it with the water level; 2c is a drain hole, and a drain hose is connected to the tube 5 through the drain valve 3; 4 extends outside the outer frame 1. 1a is a leg provided at the bottom of the outer frame 1, and 10 is a cloth amount sensor that detects the rotation of the motor 14.

The water supply pipe 18 extended from the water outlet is the water supply valve 1
Water is supplied into the washing tub 11 through the water pipe 9 .

23 is a liquid detergent storage tank having a lid 23a;
5 is a motor pump that forcibly transfers liquid detergent to tank 2.
3 and a discharge tube 22, the distal end of the discharge tube 22 has a check valve 32, and is connected to a water supply hose that supplies water to the washing tub at a connection part 24.

The electrical control circuit in these configurations has a processing circuit made up of a microcomputer in the center.

It has a power supply circuit for driving between the power supplies, a comparison circuit, a detection circuit, and then a cloth amount sensor and a water level sensor.

The selection circuit is used to select a washing process, and the display circuit displays these, the amount of detergent, and various abnormal conditions. The motor, water supply valve, drain valve, and detergent dispenser are arbitrarily driven via a drive circuit that processes signals from the above-mentioned sensors using a processing circuit made up of a microcomputer.

The details of the detergent dispenser will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. The detergent solution 3 contained in the tank 23 and the check valve 32 which is the discharge port are
The relative position of has a head of H. (This H can also be negative, so-called detergent liquid is lower than the discharge port. This is because when the tank 23 is on the top surface of the top cover 27, the dimension H is positive, but inside the outer frame 1 (for example, when placed in a blank space). Therefore, if the head is positive, without the check valve 32, the liquid will naturally flow out, and if the head is negative, the liquid will return between the tubes 22 and 26.The amount of detergent to be added is determined by the driving time of the motor pump. ,
There will be variations in this, so the check valve 32 will be
A rubber plate 38, a spacer 39, and a spring 40 with a weak spring force are formed in the center of the discharge port 32a and the push-in side 32b.
Assume that traffic is one-way. motor pump 2
5 is a small motor, which has a blade 37 engaged with a motor shaft 36 and a seal 41 in a casing 27, and forcibly transfers the detergent liquid.

The operation and operation of these configurations will be explained with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9. The operation panel 51 has a display section 52, and main operation keys 55, 56, and 57 are large and can be operated. The user can choose between ``heavily soiled,''``standard,'' and ``slightly soiled,'' and use these keys to perform washing according to a predetermined washing process program.

Reference numerals 53 and 54 are auxiliary keys, which can be used to perform "pre-washing" and "soak washing" by keying in before or after the keys 55 to 57. These are formed as one unified program, and after this completion, 55~
The washing process is automatically switched to the program by key-in No. 57.

50 is a simple lid with a handle 50a. Inside this lid, there is a manual key for arbitrarily changing the keyed-in program 55.57, for example, changing the washing time or spin-drying time. do. Since there are many keys and they are cumbersome, only the keys that are mainly used are exposed and the keys that are used occasionally are covered with a simple lid.

As shown in FIG. 8, detergent injection by keying in main operation keys 55 to 57 corresponds to each key, and
We also make adjustments and take detailed measures depending on the amount of laundry. For example, the main operation keys of A are very dirty and 55
When you start automatic operation with the key-in, the amount of detergent will increase by about 20% compared to the "standard", and the key of 57 will be "
It's about half dirty and dirty.

In these steps, as shown in the simple flowchart of FIG. 9, the laundry is put in, and water is supplied (1) by keying in the main operation key depending on how dirty the laundry is. This water supply (1) is carried out up to the low water level as determined by the water level sensor 6, which determines the amount of water supplied into the washing tub by replacing it with the water level, and then stops here and moves on to the process of draining (1). . Stirring (1) is
The amount of laundry is measured by stirring, which is much weaker than normal washing. Based on this measurement value, the water level for the next step, water supply (2), is determined, as well as the amount of detergent.Since the amount of laundry and the amount of detergent are known, the amount of water for rinsing is determined. Since you can also decide on the time and dehydration time, you can decide here and complete the program for the next process onwards.

Therefore, the water level is adjusted to match the amount of laundry in the water supply (2), and the washing is done by stirring (2), and then the water is drained.

The washing process is completed by proceeding through the steps of water supply for dehydration and rinsing (3). The automatic addition of detergent can be done by starting the water supply (
During water supply in step 2), either mix it into the water supply or add it to the water supply (
After the completion of step 2), the detergent dispenser is operated in synchronization with the water supply valve 19, so that it can be performed together with the water supply.

Along with the key-in process of these main operation keys, the auxiliary key 5
3.54 key-in process is a separate program that automatically performs the hand washing that was previously done.
The "pre-washing" process is a process of washing extremely dirty work clothes, diapers, etc. before regular washing. This [prewash]
After washing is finished, it is common to add another load of laundry and proceed to the next process, so the detergent corresponding to the amount of laundry is automatically added for the ``prewash'' and then the process indicated by @ is agitated. (2
) → Drain → Dehydrate → Pause, and then issue an alarm and pause. This alarm and pause alert you to the completion of ``pre-washing'' and instruct you to put in another load of laundry, after the machine has paused for the required amount of time.

Leave it as it is, and add the laundry separately.
It is possible to detect the opening/closing signal of the lid, determine that there is another load of laundry, and proceed to the next process, or conversely, after a predetermined pause, proceed to the next process regardless. The zero-order process is water supply (1) in which water is supplied to a low water level by key-in. Now measure the amount of laundry again.

Automatically add detergent again and stir while washing (2) →
Proceed to the rinsing process of drainage → dehydration → water supply (3).

Next, in the process of "soaking and washing" in ■, you can wash stubbornly soiled items in a washing machine instead of washing them by hand, which was traditionally done by hand.
Soak it in water with detergent in a tub etc.
In a washing machine, you add the action of moving the laundry by kneading it from time to time, and then soak it, and after a certain amount of time, put it into the washing tub with water containing detergent and wash it according to the normal program. It was intended to be done by itself.

By keying in the auxiliary key 54■ either before or after keying in A-C1 of any of the main operation keys 55 to 57, the same program will proceed until the automatic injection of detergent, and stirring (3) as shown in Figure 1■ will proceed. Mud time (10 seconds to 3
The product is stirred for several minutes, then paused for quite a long time, and this cycle is repeated several times to create a "washing process." Usually it takes about 1 hour.

After this "soak washing" is completed, the washing proceeds from the final pause step to the agitation (2) step, which includes normal washing, without draining or dehydrating. Further, in this case, automatic injection of detergent is performed only once at the beginning, and is not performed thereafter.

Although it is a complicated program, the agitation (2) time in normal washing is not a preset time, but this time can also be adjusted by keying in each operation key. First, the automatic detergent injection is for liquid detergent, so if you run out of liquid detergent and want to use the powder, open the simple lid 50 and cancel the automatic detergent injection. This circuit does not automatically add detergent when the key is pressed in. At this time, powdered detergent has more time to dissolve in water than liquid detergent, and if the agitation (2) is performed for the same amount of time as liquid detergent, stain removal will be worse. Liquid detergent dissolves instantly, while powder detergent can take several minutes, depending on the water temperature. Therefore, by keying in the cancel key, it is possible to lengthen the agitation (2) time during washing, thereby eliminating the difference in cleaning rate.

Secondly, the key-in for "soaking and washing" is also the same, and it is so effective that it can be done for half the normal time.

The same idea applies to the automatic addition of detergent, and in the case of the key-in of ``pre-washing,'' it is sufficiently effective to reduce the amount of detergent that was initially added, and can save detergent.

Next, the cloth amount sensor 10 for determining the amount of laundry and the water level sensor 6 for determining the amount of water supplied will be explained.
In Figure 5, the shaft 10 protrudes from the motor 14.
An engaging element 64 having a magnet 63 magnetized to 1 is press-fitted to b. A case 60 having a magnetic pole 60a facing the magnet 63 has a mounting leg 60b fixed to the motor 10 with a screw 65, a coil 61 is wound around a bobbin 66, and a lead 62 is pulled out by the coil 61. During stirring, the motor 10 repeats turning on for 0.3 to 1.0 seconds and turning off for 0.3 to 2.0 seconds. shaft 10b
When the shaft 10b rotates, an electromotive force is generated by the magnet 63 and the magnetic pole 60a, but since the shaft 10b rotates due to inertia even at 0FFL, a voltage waveform as shown in FIG. 11 is obtained. Here, by reading h, the time taken from point a to point b when the shaft 10b stops rotating, the amount of laundry that has been put in can be determined. This is shown in FIG.

The water level sensor 6 has a pressure transmission hole 70a in the base 70, and transmits pressure to the diaphragm 71. A plunger 72 is located on the upper surface of the diaphragm 71, and is prevented from falling to the left or right by a moving guide support rod 72a.A magnetic body 73 is integrally supported with the plunger. 74 is a coil having a drawer 75; 76 is a spring which applies a load arbitrarily matched to the pressure transmitted to the diaphragm 71; 77 is a spring receiver. With this configuration, when the water level rises, the diaphragm moves upward, the magnetic body 73 approaches the coil 74, and as the pressure decreases, it descends again and returns to its original state.

Due to so-called pressure fluctuations, the relative position between the magnetic body 73 and the coil 74 changes.

This is because the reactance of the coil 74 changes, so this change in reactance is used to form a general LC oscillator, and this oscillation frequency is determined by a microcomputer.
It can be seen as the water level. The basic circuit is shown in Figure 14, where 80 is a capacitor, 84.81 is an adjustment resistor, and 8
3 is an inverter. The oscillation frequency for the actual movement of the magnetic body 73 becomes lower as the reactance increases,
By drawing a curve as shown in Fig. 15, the water level can be determined and controlled using any point on this curve.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, not only does a cloth amount sensor automatically dispense the appropriate amount of detergent according to the amount of laundry, but it also mechanizes the conventional hand washing process, so that the necessary amount of detergent is added in various processes. To provide a washing machine which can dispense the amount of detergent at an appropriate timing, is more efficient than manual washing, is easy to use, and can be finely controlled.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the washing machine, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the electric circuit, Figure 3 is a diagram explaining the operation of the detergent dispenser, and Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view along the center line of the check valve. , Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the blades of the detergent injection motor pump, Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the casing of the motor pump, Fig. 7 is a partial view of the operation 1 display panel, and Fig. 8 is the detergent injection amount and selection key. 9 is a simple flowchart, FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the cloth amount sensor, FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the relationship between the output of the cloth amount sensor and time, and FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the relationship between the decay time and A diagram showing the relationship between the amount of laundry, Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of the water level sensor, and Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of the water level sensor.
The figure is an electric circuit diagram, and FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a curve in which the oscillation frequency changes with the movement of the magnetic material. 6... Water level sensor, 10... Fabric amount sensor, 25
...Motor pump. No. tm 10,000 2 EJ E3 qfEJ No. 10 Wholesale I Otsukura 120 No. 13 No. 1/4 fJ j family LL life ρto. 1-1 Hitachi Ltd. Taga 1-1 Hitachi Ltd. Taga 1-1 Hitachi Ltd. Taga 1-1 Hitachi Ltd. Taga procedural amendments 1939 (, 6++) 2+7 Patent Commissioner Manabu Shiga Case Display @] 1960 Patent Application No. 14786 Name of Invention Person Who Amends Washing Machine/1 Relationship with Soup Patent Applicant P, 14+ 15101 Manufactured by Hitachi Co., Ltd. Representative residence address: 5-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 1001
No. Hitachi, Ltd. Tel: Tokyo 212-1111
4 people representative) 1st floor Figure 11

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A cloth amount sensor that measures the amount of laundry put in, a water level sensor that measures the amount of water supplied to the washing tub by replacing it with the water level in the washing tub, and a container that stores detergent. In a washing machine that automatically dispenses detergent according to the amount of laundry measured by holding the laundry, the agitation for measuring the amount of laundry is different from the agitation for normal washing, and the motor is turned on for a short period of time.
A washing machine characterized by a special stirring function with a long ff. 2. Stirring to measure the amount of laundry should be done after initially supplying a small amount of water, and then supplying water commensurate with the measurement, and when stirring for normal washing, it should be done at about 1/3 of the total stirring time. 2. The washing machine according to claim 1, further comprising a function of performing agitation for measurement again, performing measurement, and determining the measurement result.