JPS638396Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] This invention relates to a water tank in a steam iron that stores water for steam generation.

Recently, in order to make it easier to pour water into the water tank, steam irons have been developed that have a water tank that is detachably attached to the base, so that when pouring water, the water tank can be separated from the base and handled independently. provided. The water tank in this type of steam iron is provided with a dripping nozzle on the outer bottom surface of the main body, through which the water in the main body is sequentially dripped into the evaporation chamber of the base. The drip nozzle is supported on the main body by a holder, and the holder is attached to the main body by a mounting screw. That is, a self-tap portion formed by threading the material itself is provided on the bottom plate of the main body, a mounting screw is screwed into the self-tap portion from the holder, and the holder is attached using the mounting screw.

By the way, since the holder is arranged so as to face the evaporation chamber of the base, its outer peripheral area becomes considerably hot. The holder itself is made of heat-resistant resin, so there is no problem, but the main body is made of ordinary synthetic resin for cost reasons, which can cause the following problems. In other words, as mentioned above, conventionally, a self-tap part is formed on the bottom plate of the main body, and a mounting screw from the holder is screwed into this self-tap part. conduct. Since the self-tap part makes contact with the mounting screw over a large area, the self-tap part becomes locally hot and receives external force due to the difference in thermal expansion between the self-tap part and the mounting screw, which causes stress and, as a result, cracks. , there is a risk that water inside the main body may leak.

This idea was made with attention to these points, and its purpose is to improve the screw insertion structure of the mounting screw so that the water in the steam iron does not put stress on the main body of the water tank. It is intended to provide a tank.

An embodiment of this invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the figure, 1 is a base formed by aluminum die-casting, and a heater 2 is embedded in this base 1. A cover 3 is placed on the top surface of the base 1, and a heat shield plate 4 is further provided on the top surface of the cover 3. A handle body 5 is attached to the rear end side of the upper surface of the heat shield plate 4, and this handle body 5 has a cavity 6 at the center of its side surface, and this cavity 6 forms a grip part 7 at the upper end. There is. A water tank 8 is detachably provided on the front end side of the upper surface of the heat shield plate 4. The main body 9 of the water tank 8 is made of transparent synthetic resin and is formed into an L-shape. This main body 9 consists of a main body 9a and a bottom plate 9 heat-welded to the lower surface of the main body 9a.
A water inlet body 10 molded from opaque synthetic resin is attached to the upper front end side, and a water inlet 11 is formed in this water inlet body 10, and the water inlet 11 can be opened and closed. A water filler lid 12 is provided. Further, first and second operating rods 13 and 14 are fitted into the main body 9 in parallel from its top surface to its bottom surface. Reference numeral 15 denotes a cap attached to the upper surface of the main body 9, and this cap 15 is provided with first and second operation buttons 16, 17 corresponding to the operation rods 13, 14, and these insertion buttons 16, 1
By pressing 7, the operating rods 13 and 14 can be appropriately switched between two states: a state in which they are displaced downward, and a state in which they are raised again.

The lower end of each operating rod 13, 14 projects downward from the bottom surface of the main body 9. A plurality of through holes 18 are bored in the bottom surface of the main body 9 at positions around the portion through which one of the operating rods 13 passes through. Further, an integral holder 19 is attached to the outer bottom surface of the main body 9 via mounting screws 19a, 19a corresponding to the protruding portions of the operating rods 13, 14, and this holder 19 is provided with a holder 19 facing the through hole 18... A recess 20 is formed in the recessed portion. A drip nozzle 21 is attached to the inner bottom of the recess 20 with a part of it, that is, a nozzle hole 21a, protruding toward the outer surface of the holder 19. It's coming. A cylindrical packing 22 made of an elastic material is provided between the dripping nozzle 21 and the outer bottom surface of the main body 9, and the through holes 18 are passed through the inside of the packing 22.
... and the drip nozzle 21 are in communication with each other. As shown in FIG. 3, this packing 22 has flange pieces 23, 23 integrally formed on the inner periphery of the opening at both ends thereof. A coil spring 24 is interposed on the inner periphery of this packing 22, and this spring 24
The flange pieces 23, 23 are elastically pressed and brought into pressure contact with the outer bottom surface of the main body 9 and the dripping nozzle 21, thereby maintaining a fluid-tight state of communication between the through holes 18 and the dripping nozzle 21. ing. Second
The operating rod 14 slidably passes through the holder 19 and projects downward, and a push plate 25 is attached to the projecting end.

The holder 19, which supports the drip nozzle 21 relative to the main body 1 in this manner, is attached to the main body 1 in the following manner. That is, mounting pieces 19b, 19b are integrally provided at both ends of the holder 19, and recessed step portions 19c, 19c are formed on the inner surfaces of these mounting pieces 19b, 19b. Also, the main body 9
A metal receiving plate 26 is provided on the inner bottom surface. This receiving plate 26 is fixed to the inner bottom surface of the main body 9 by thermal welding and caulking using bosses 9c, 9c integrally provided on the inner bottom surface of the main body 9. This receiving plate 26 has screw holes 26a and 26.
a is formed. In addition, the threaded portions 26a, 2
Through holes 9d, 9 are formed in the bottom plate 9b of the main body 9 opposite to the holes 6a.
d is formed. The inner diameters of these through holes 9d, 9d are slightly larger than the outer diameters of the mounting screws 19a, 19a for mounting the holder. Then, the mounting screws 19a, 19a are inserted from the outer surface side of the mounting pieces 19b, 19b, and these screws are inserted into the through holes 9d, 9.
d and are screwed into the threaded portions 26a, 26a of the receiving plate 26, and O-rings 29, 29 are interposed in the recessed stepped portions 19c, 19c on the inner surfaces of the mounting pieces 19b, 19b. And the above mounting screws 19a, 19a
The holder 19 is firmly attached to the main body 9 by tightening.

An opening 4a is formed in the heat shield plate 4.
The lower end side of the holder 19 faces the inner surface side of the heat shield plate 4 through a. Hooking grooves 27, 27 are formed horizontally on both ends of the outer periphery of the lower end of this holder 19, and a hooking spring 28, which is attached to the inner surface of the heat shield plate 4, is elastically inserted into these hooking grooves 27, 27. We are involved. This latch spring 28 is as shown in FIG.
It is formed into a U-shape having a pair of opposing hooking portions 28a, 28a, and is held by a plurality of dowels 30 with the hooking portions 28a, 28a disposed on both ends of the inner surface of the opening 4a. ing. This latch spring 28 is attached to the opening 4a of the holder 19.
By being pushed into the inner surface of the heat shield plate 4, the locking portions 29, 29 are elastically expanded in opposite directions and engaged with the locking grooves 27, 27 of the holder 19, and this engagement causes the holder to close. 19 is hung on the heat shield plate 4.

Cap 15 provided on main body 9 of water tank 8
On the back side, there is a latching piece 3 having a latching claw 31 at the tip.
2 are integrally provided. And this hanging piece 3
2 is releasably engaged with a stepped portion 33 formed on the inner peripheral portion of the handle portion 7 via the hooking portion 31.
Thus, the water tank 8 is fixedly attached to the base 1 by the engagement between the latching piece 32 and the stepped portion 33 and the engagement between the holder 19 and the latching spring 28. Then, by releasing each of the above-mentioned engagements from this attached state, in other words, the holder 19 is pulled out against the elastic force of the latching spring 23, and the latching claw 3
1 from the stepped portion 33, the water tank 8 can be removed from the base 1. Water is then injected into the main body 9 in this removed state. Since the main body 9 is made of a transparent material, when water is injected into the main body 9, changes in the water level can be easily recognized from the outside. After injecting water into the main body 9 in this way, the water filling lid 12 is closed, the holder 19 is pushed into the opening 26, and the latching grooves 27, 2
7 is engaged with the latching portions 28a, 28a of the latching spring 28, and the latching claw 31 of the latching piece 32 is engaged with the stepped portion 33 of the handle body 5, thereby attaching the main body 9 to the base 1 again.

On the other hand, a recessed step 39 is formed on the lower surface of the base 1, and a distribution plate 40 is attached to the recessed step 39 via screws 41, and the outer peripheral edge of the distribution plate 40 and the inner peripheral edge of the recessed step 39 are connected to each other. A groove-shaped dispersion hole 42 is formed between the two. Further, a concentration hole 43 is bored in a part of the distal end side of the dispersion plate 40. An evaporation chamber 44 is formed on the upper surface of the base 1 located on the opposite side of the distribution plate 40, and this evaporation chamber 44 communicates with the concentration hole 43 via a first guide path 45, and a second
It communicates with the dispersion hole 42 via a guide path 46 . A drip port 47 is formed on the upper surface of the evaporation chamber 44, and a valve port 49 forming a part of the cross section of the passageway is located in the middle of the second guiding path 46.
7 is provided in parallel. A packing 50 integrally formed of an elastic material is stretched across the drip port 47 and the valve port 49. This packing 50 is formed with a connection port 51 at a portion facing the dripping port 47 and a valve membrane portion 52 at a portion facing the valve port 49. Springs 53 and 54 are interposed on the lower surfaces of the connection port 51 and the valve membrane portion 52, respectively, and these springs 53 and 54 elastically urge the connection port 51 and the valve membrane portion 52 upward, respectively.

Holder 19 provided on the outer bottom surface of the water tank 8
passes through the heat shield plate 4 and the cover 3 to face the upper surface of the packing 50. And the drip nozzle 2 provided on the holder 19
1 is connected to the connection port 5 against the spring 53.
1 to fit into the connection port 51, and this fitting causes the drip nozzle 21 to connect to the drip port 47.
connected in a liquid-tight manner. Further, a push plate 2 provided on the second operating rod 14 protruding from the holder 19
5 faces the valve leaflet portion 52.

Note that 55 is a temperature controller for adjusting the temperature of the base 1, and 56 is an operation dial thereof.

In the steam iron configured in this way, the base 1 is heated by the heater 2. and the first
When the first operating rod 13 is pushed down via the operating button 16 and the drip nozzle 21 is closed, no steam is ejected from either the dispersion hole 42 or the concentration hole 43. From this state, press the first operation button 16.
When the first operating rod 13 is pulled upward to open the dripping nozzle 21 by operating the
Steam flows into the evaporation chamber 44 through the nozzle hole 21a of the dripping nozzle 21 and the dripping port 47 in this order, and steam is generated in the evaporation chamber 44. And at this time, valve port 49
When the steam chamber 44 is opened, the steam in the steam chamber 44 is ejected from the concentration hole 43 and the dispersion hole 44 over a wide area through the first and second guide paths 45 and 46.
In contrast, by operating the second operation button 17, the second
When the operating rod 14 is pushed down and the valve membrane portion 52 is pressed against its own elasticity and the elasticity of the spring 54 via the push plate 25 to close the valve port 49, the second guide path 46 is blocked. The evaporation chamber 44
The steam inside is concentrated and ejected only from the concentration hole 43.

The outer peripheral area of the holder 19 becomes quite high due to the radiant heat of the base 1, and therefore, the heat is transferred to the mounting screws 19a,
19a. However, this mounting screw 19
a, 19a are screwed into threaded parts 26a, 26a of a metal receiving plate 26 provided on the inner bottom surface of the main body 9, and the inner diameters of the through holes 9d, 9d are the same as those of the mounting screws 19a, 1.
The outer diameter of the main body 9a is larger than that of the outer diameter of the main body 9a, and there is a gap between them, so that the heat is not directly transmitted to the main body 9 but is dispersed to the receiving plate 26, so that the main body 9 becomes locally high temperature. , mounting screws 19a, 19a
There is no external force due to the difference in thermal expansion between the two, and therefore no thermal stress or associated cracks occur. Further, even when the mounting screws 19a, 19a are tightened, the tightening force is received by the receiving plate 26, so not only will the main body 9 not be inadvertently damaged, but the holder 19 will be strengthened. Can be installed on. Furthermore, when the first operating rod 13 is pressed downward to close the drip nozzle 21, the pressing force is applied to the mounting screws 19a, 19a.
However, in this case, even if the mounting screw 19
Since a and 19a are screwed together with the metal receiving plate 26, the main body 9 will not be damaged.

As explained above, according to this invention, a metal receiving plate is provided on the inner bottom surface of the main body, a threaded part is formed on this receiving plate, and the mounting screw is passed through the bottom plate of the main body from the outer surface of the holder. Since the main body is screwed into the threaded part, no local stress is applied to the main body, and therefore the occurrence of cracks is reliably prevented and the durability of the main body is greatly improved. It is something that can be done.

[Brief description of the drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of this invention, with Fig. 1 being a general sectional view, Fig. 2 being a partial sectional view, Fig. 3 being a plan view showing the state in which the holder and the locking spring are engaged, and Fig. Figure 4 is a plan view of the holder, Figure 5 is a plan view of the receiving plate,
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the holder in an attached state, FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view, and FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the dispersion hole and the concentration hole. 8...Water tank, 9...Main body, 9b...Bottom plate,
19...Holder, 19a...Mounting screw, 21...
Dripping nozzle, 26...receiving plate, 26a...screwing part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] In a device in which a drip nozzle for dripping and discharging the water inside the main body is attached to the outer bottom surface of a synthetic resin main body via a holder, a receiving plate made of metal and having a threaded part is preliminarily attached to the inner bottom surface of the main body. In the steam iron, the holder is attached to the main body by screwing a mounting screw through the bottom plate of the main body from the outer surface of the holder and into the threaded part of the receiving plate, and tightening the mounting screw. water tank.