KR100672606B1 - Laundry device - Google Patents

Abstract

A washing machine is provided to wash the laundry optimally under different condition according to load of the laundry by installing a load selection unit, to launder a small quantity of clothes simply by using only steam, and to launder clothes efficiently by decreasing power consumption and reducing washing water. A washing machine comprises a control assembly(100) having a course selection unit for selecting various operation courses, a load selection unit for selecting load of clothes and a display unit for indicating information, a steam supply unit(200) for generating and supplying steam into a tub or a drum for steam washing course, a water supply unit(300) for supplying water to the steam supply unit for generating steam, a driving unit(400) for rotating the drum containing the laundry in washing by steaming, and a controller(500) for controlling supply amount, supply time or supply cycle of steam into the tub or the drum from the steam supply unit according to load, and regulating the water supply unit and the driving unit. The control assembly has a steam operation display unit for displaying process of steam washing course, and a load display unit for displaying selected load by the load selection unit.

Description

Laundry device

1 is a schematic block diagram for explaining the structure of a laundry machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a front view for explaining a control assembly of the laundry machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a schematic flowchart illustrating a steam washing process of a washing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

100. Control assembly 110. Course selection

120. Load selection section 130. Display section

140. Steam operation display unit 150. Load capacity display unit

200. Steam supply 210. Case

211.Supply line 212.Steam supply line

220. Heating heater 300. Water supply

310. Water supply valve 320. Euro valve

400. Drive 500. Controller

610. Water level detector 620. Drainage

621. Drainpipe 622. Drainage pump

630. Temperature sensing unit

The present invention relates to a laundry apparatus, and more particularly, to a laundry apparatus configured to wash laundry only with steam.

In general, the washing apparatus includes a pulsator type washing machine in which the drum is set in the vertical direction, a drum washing machine in which the drum is laid in the horizontal direction, a combined-use washing machine having a drying function, and a clothes dryer for drying only clothes and the like. do.

Among the above washing machines, the pulsator type washing machine, the drum washing machine, and the combined dry washing machine usually perform washing-related strokes using washing water.

In particular, recently, a washing apparatus having a steam generator for supplying steam during a washing stroke has been disclosed.

However, the conventional washing machine having the steam generator described above was only used for the purpose of assisting the washing stroke with the steam provided by the steam generator.

That is, it was not possible to operate the washing only by steam without the need for rinsing or dehydration stroke.

Therefore, the consumer is not properly utilizing the function of the steam generator due to the burden of power consumption for the operation of the steam generator.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems according to the prior art described above, the object of the present invention is to allow a relatively small amount of washing with less contamination laundry to proceed with a minimum power consumption and washing water consumption It is to provide a laundry machine of a new structure.

According to the laundry apparatus of the present invention for achieving the above object, a course selection unit for the selection of various driving courses including a steam washing course for washing the laundry only with steam, a load selection unit for load selection such as cloth, A control assembly including a display unit for displaying various kinds of information; Steam providing unit for generating steam for the steam washing course to the tub; A water supply unit supplying water for steam generation to the steam providing unit; A driving unit driven to rotate a tub in which laundry is accommodated during steam washing; And, in conjunction with the control assembly to control the supply amount or steam supply time or the steam supply period of the steam provided from the steam supply unit into the tub in accordance with the selected load amount through the load selection unit, the water supply unit and the drive unit Controller for controlling each operation: characterized in that it comprises a.

In addition, a washing apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is a course selection unit for selecting a variety of driving courses including a steam washing course for washing the laundry only with steam, and a display unit for displaying a variety of information A control assembly comprising; Steam providing unit for generating steam to provide a tub; A water supply unit supplying water for steam generation to the steam providing unit; A driving unit driven to rotate the tub containing the laundry; And a controller for interlocking with the control assembly to control a supply amount of steam, a steam supply time, or a steam supply cycle provided from the steam supply unit to the tub, and to control the water supply unit and the driving unit, respectively. Characterized in that configured.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying Figures 1 and 2 will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the laundry apparatus according to the present invention.

The washing apparatus presented in the embodiment of the present invention may be a conventional washing machine, may be a combined-use washing machine, or may be a clothes dryer.

In addition, the washing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention as shown in Figure 1 is largely the control assembly 100, the steam providing unit 200, the water supply unit 300, the drive unit 400, the controller 500 It is configured to include).

The washing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention described above will be described in more detail for each component as follows.

First, the control assembly 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

The control assembly 100 is a part where a user's manipulation is performed and includes a course selector 110, a load selector 120, and a display 130.

Here, the course selector 110 is configured to select various course-specific operations that can be performed using the laundry apparatus.

The various course-specific driving includes a steam washing course for washing laundry only with steam in addition to various washing courses that are commonly used.

In addition, the course selector 110 may include various buttons or dial knobs. The embodiment of the present invention suggests that the course selector 110 is composed of a dial knob.

In addition, the load selection unit 120 is a site for selecting a load of laundry for performing a steam washing course, for example, the number of clothes.

The load selector 120 may also be configured with various buttons or dial knobs. However, in the embodiment of the present invention, the load selector 120 is configured as a single button.

In other words, the load amount is changed sequentially whenever a single button is selected, so that the load amount can be changed with a minimum structure.

The display unit 130 is a portion configured to display various types of information.

In this case, the display unit 130 may be configured as an LED or an LCD, and the display unit 130 may be configured to display a current operation progress or an elapsed time (or remaining time).

On the other hand, the embodiment of the present invention proposes that the steam operation display unit 140 is further included in the control assembly 100.

In this case, the steam operation display unit 140 is a configuration for displaying whether the steam washing is in progress, may be configured as a partial region of the display unit 130, as shown, separate from the display unit 130 It may be composed of a lamp or LED.

In addition, the embodiment of the present invention suggests that the load amount display unit 150 is further included in the control assembly.

The load amount display unit 150 is a configuration for displaying the load amount selected through the load amount selection unit 120, it is preferably configured as an LED window.

Of course, the load display unit 150 may be configured as an LCD window. In addition, the load display unit 150 may be integrated with the display unit 130 described above. That is, the display unit 130 may be configured to also perform the role of the load amount display unit 150.

Next, the steam providing unit 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

First, the steam providing unit 200 is configured to generate steam for the steam washing course and to provide it into the tub (11).

The steam providing unit 200 includes a case 210 and a heating heater 220.

Here, the case 210 is a container in which water used for steam generation is stored.

In particular, the case 210 is connected to the water supply pipe 211 and the steam supply pipe 212, respectively. The water supply pipe 211 is connected to the water supply unit 300 to receive water from the water supply unit 300, the steam supply pipe 212 is connected to the tub 11, the steam generated inside the case 210 To the tub (11).

In addition, the heating heater 220 is a heating element for generating steam by evaporating the water stored in the case 210, it is installed in the case 210. Of course, if the case 210 is made of a material that can be heated to a high temperature (metal or ceramic, etc.), the heating heater 220 outside the case 210 to heat the case 210 itself Or may be embedded in the wall surface of the case 210.

Next, the water supply unit 300 will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

The water supply unit 300 is configured to supply water for steam generation to the steam providing unit 200.

At this time, the water supply unit 300 includes a water supply pipe 211 connected to the case 210 of the steam providing unit 200, and the other end of the water supply pipe 211 is exposed to the outside of the washing apparatus to the water pipe (shown) Is omitted).

In addition, the water supply unit 300 is configured to further include a water supply valve (310). At this time, the water supply valve 310 is installed on the pipeline of the water supply pipe 211, it is operated to selectively open and close the water supply pipe (211).

On the other hand, the water supply unit 300 is more preferably configured to supply the wash water into the tub 11 of the laundry apparatus, for this purpose in the embodiment of the present invention the water supply pipe 211 forming the water supply unit 300 It is further suggested that the tub 11 is connected to communicate with the inside of the tub 11.

In this case, one end of the water supply pipe 211 is connected to the case 210 of the steam providing unit 200, the other end is formed of at least two branched pipes connected to communicate with the inside of the tub 11. The branched portion of the water supply pipe 211 is further provided with a flow path valve 320 for guiding the water flow.

Next, the driving unit 400 will be described.

First, the driving unit 400 includes a motor driven to rotate the drum 12 in which the laundry is accommodated during steam washing. At this time, the drum 12 is rotatably installed in the tub (11).

In particular, the driving unit 400 is preferably configured to be directly axially coupled to the drum (12). Of course, although not shown, the driving unit 400 may be configured to indirectly drive the drum 12 using a belt and a belt pulley.

In addition, the driving unit 400 is configured such that the drum 12 is rotated at a speed of 100 rpm or less during the steam washing, and is preferably configured to be rotated at a speed of 50 rpm or less.

In addition, the driving unit 400 is most preferably configured to rotate while selectively inverting the drum 12 in two directions opposite to each other, instead of rotating the drum 12 only in one direction.

Next, the controller 500 will be described.

The controller 500 is configured to interlock with the control assembly 100.

In addition, the controller 500 is configured to control the operations of the steam providing unit 200, the water supply unit 300, and the driving unit 400, respectively.

In this case, the controller 500 is interlocked with the control assembly 100 and into the tub 11 or the drum 12 from the steam provider 200 according to the load selected through the load selection unit 120. It controls the supply amount of steam provided or the steam supply time or the steam supply cycle, and controls the operation of the water supply unit 300 and the driving unit 400, respectively.

On the other hand, the washing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the water level detecting unit 610 is further provided. This is as shown in Figure 1 attached.

In this case, the water level detection unit 610 is configured to detect the water level of the water present in the tub 11, it is preferably configured as a water level detection sensor.

Of course, the water level detection unit 610 may also be configured as a pressure gauge configured to determine the water level by sensing the pressure fluctuating according to the water level of the water present in the tub (11).

In particular, the tub 11 is preferably further provided with a drain 620 for selectively draining the water inside the tub (11).

In this case, the drain 620 is configured to drain the water under the control of the controller 500 when the level detected by the water level detector 610 is greater than or equal to a preset level. Pump 622.

The drain pipe 621 is connected to the tub 11, a pipe for guiding the water in the tub 11 to the outside of the device.

In addition, the drain pump 622 is installed in the drain pipe 621 and is driven to drain the outside of the device through the drain pipe 621 by pumping the water inside the tub (11).

The structure of the drain 620 is as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, the washing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the temperature sensing unit 630 is further provided.

The temperature sensing unit 630 is configured to sense the temperature inside the tub 11 or the drum 12 and provide the sensing value to the controller 500.

At this time, the temperature sensing unit 630 is preferably composed of a conventional temperature sensor.

Hereinafter, a steam washing process using the laundry apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention described above will be described. At this time, Figure 3 is a schematic flow chart for explaining the steam washing process.

The steam washing is a driving course for washing laundry only with steam. That is, the laundry can be washed only with steam without proceeding with the conventional washing stroke, rinsing stroke and dehydration stroke.

In particular, the steam laundry is a series of driving courses for washing a small amount of laundry so that simple contaminants can be removed within a short time. At this time, the laundry for steam washing is stored in the drum 12 constituting the washing apparatus. Of course, it is more preferable that the drum 12 accommodates not only the laundry but also a contaminant transfer cloth (not shown) capable of transferring the contaminants accumulated in the laundry.

First, the steam washing course is selected by the course selector 110 of the control assembly 100 (S110).

That is, the steam washing course is selected through the operation of the course selection unit 110.

In addition, when the selection of the steam washing course is made as described above, the controller 500 controls the steam driving display unit 140 to inform the user that the steam driving is started.

In addition, the control assembly 100 controls the load display unit 150 to request a load selection for laundry (S120).

At this time, the information displayed on the initial load amount display unit 150 is basically information on the load amount set.

In this case, the user operates the load selector 120 to designate how many pieces of laundry are put into the actual drum 12.

For example, when two pieces of laundry are put, the load amount selecting unit 120 is operated so that the load amount displayed on the load amount display unit 120 becomes 2.

In addition, when the steam washing course is selected as described above, other operation buttons except for the course selector 110 and the load selector 120 may be controlled to be inoperative. This is to prevent confusion of consumers due to the selection of functions not related to the steam washing.

In addition, when the load selection by the above-described series of processes is completed, the controller 500 determines an operating condition for steam washing according to the selected load amount (S130).

At this time, the operating conditions for the steam washing, at least one condition of the water supply to the steam providing unit 200, steam washing progress temperature, steam washing progress time, the driving unit 400 rotation speed.

Here, the water supply amount is determined differently according to the selected load amount.

For example, when the load of laundry is relatively large compared to the load set basically, the water supply of the water is also determined to be made relatively more than the water supply set basically, and the load of the laundry is relatively small compared to the load set basically. It is preferable that the water supply amount of the water is determined to be made relatively smaller than the water supply amount basically set.

Then, when each operation condition of the steam washing by the above-described series of processes is determined, the controller 500 proceeds to steam washing according to the determined respective conditions (S140).

This will be described in more detail as follows.

First, the controller 500 controls the water supply valve 310 constituting the water supply unit 300 to supply water into the case 210 of the steam providing unit 200.

When the process of supplying water to the steam providing unit 200 is performed as described above, it is preferable that water is not supplied into the tub 11 through the control of the flow path valve 320.

This is because, when water is supplied into the tub 11, the laundry in the drum 12 may be wetted by the water to be supplied.

Then, when the water supply to the steam providing unit 200 by the above process is completed, the controller 500 generates a heating heater 220 constituting the steam providing unit 200.

As a result, the water supplied into the case 210 is evaporated to generate steam.

In addition, the steam generated as described above is provided into the tub 11 and the drum 12 through the steam supply pipe 212.

Therefore, the inside of the drum 12 is in a high temperature and high humidity state due to the steam, the laundry inside the drum 12 is affected by the high temperature steam to remove a simple contamination and the like (eg, Fine stains, etc.), the laundry is washed.

In particular, when steam is provided into the tub 11 and the drum 12 as described above, the drum 12 is rotated while the driving unit 400 is controlled.

At this time, the drum 12 is preferably driven to rotate at a speed of approximately 100rpm or less (preferably 50rpm or less), and more preferably driven to be reversed with a predetermined time period. This is to ensure that the steam is evenly provided to all parts of the laundry in the drum 12.

In addition, the operating time of the steam washing course as described above is preferably set differently according to the load of the laundry. For example, the more the load, the longer the operation for a relatively long time, the less the load is to operate for a relatively short time.

Of course, it is preferable that the steam washing course is set differently according to the load of the laundry. For example, the more the load, the more the operation in a relatively high temperature environment, the less the load is to operate in a relatively low temperature environment.

At this time, the checking of the operating temperature is made by the temperature sensing unit 630.

That is, the temperature inside the tub 11 or the drum 12 is continuously sensed by the temperature sensing unit 630 and is provided to the controller 500.

In this case, the controller 500 repeatedly performs on / off control of the heating heater 220 constituting the steam providing unit 200 based on the provided temperature information.

Therefore, the laundry in the drum 12 is washed while sterilization is performed while simple contamination is removed by the hot steam. At this time, if the contaminant transition cloth is provided together with the laundry inside the drum 12, the simple contaminants accumulated on the laundry are completely removed from the laundry while being transferred to the contaminant transition cloth (not shown).

On the other hand, when the above-described steam washing course is carried out, it is preferable that the washing water inside the tub 11 does not exceed a predetermined level. In this case, the predetermined level is a level of a height lower than that of the drum 12.

This is to prevent the problem that the wash water soaks the laundry in the drum (12).

Accordingly, the method may further include controlling the drain 620 before or during operation of the steam washing course.

That is, when it is determined that the washing water inside the tub 11 exceeds the preset water level through the water level detecting unit 610, the controller 500 may drain the washing water in the tub 11. To control the drain pump 622.

In addition, when the steam washing course as described above is operated for an operation time set according to the load, the operation is terminated while the power of the heating heater 220 constituting the steam providing unit 200 is turned off.

Meanwhile, although the steam washing course is completed as described above, the user may not know whether the steam washing course ends.

In this case, problems such as wrinkles are caused due to the long standing of the laundry.

Therefore, even after the steam washing is completed, the drum 12 is preferably controlled to rotate continuously.

In this case, the drum 12 may be continuously rotated until the user opens the door (not shown) of the washing apparatus, or until an operation of the control assembly 100 for a separate operation stop occurs. It is preferable to.

The washing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention described above can obtain various effects as described below.

First, according to the washing apparatus of the embodiment of the present invention has a simple small amount of washing is possible using only steam.

Second, according to the laundry apparatus of the embodiment of the present invention, by providing a load selector for selecting a load amount such as cloth in the control assembly, it is possible to optimize steam washing according to the load of the laundry.

Third, since the control of each configuration of the washing apparatus by the controller can be made under different conditions according to the load of the laundry, there is an effect that the optimum steam washing is possible.

Fourth, the washing of the laundry with a small amount and relatively less pollution has the effect that can proceed with the minimum power consumption and washing water consumption.

Claims (17)

A control assembly including a course selection unit for selecting various driving courses including a steam washing course for washing laundry only with steam, a load selection unit for selecting loads such as cloth, and a display unit displaying various information; A steam providing unit generating steam for a steam washing course and providing the same to a tub or a drum; A water supply unit supplying water for steam generation to the steam providing unit; A driving unit driven to rotate a drum containing laundry when steam is washed; And, The water supply unit and the driving unit control the supply amount or the steam supply time of the steam provided from the steam supply unit to the tub or the drum, or the steam supply period according to the load amount selected through the load selection unit while being linked with the control assembly. Controller for controlling the operation of each of: a laundry machine comprising a. The method of claim 1, The control assembly Washing apparatus further comprises a steam operation display for displaying whether the steam washing progress. The method of claim 1, The control assembly Washing apparatus characterized in that it further comprises a load amount display unit for displaying the selected load amount through the load selection unit. The method of claim 1, The steam providing unit Water is stored, the water supply unit is connected to the water supply pipe, the tub or drum and the case is connected to the steam supply pipe, And a heating heater provided in the case to generate steam by evaporating the stored water. The method of claim 1, Washing apparatus further comprises a water level detecting unit for detecting the water level of the water present in the tub. The method of claim 5, And a drainage unit configured to drain the water under the control of the controller when the water level detected by the water level detection unit is greater than or equal to a preset level. The method of claim 1, And a temperature sensing unit configured to sense a temperature inside the tub or the drum and provide the sensing value to the controller. The method of claim 1, The driving unit Washing apparatus, characterized in that consisting of a motor that can rotate at a rotation speed of less than 100rpm. A control assembly including a course selection unit for selecting various driving courses including a steam washing course for washing laundry only by steam, and a display unit displaying various types of information; Steam providing unit for generating steam to provide a tub or drum; A water supply unit supplying water for steam generation to the steam providing unit; A driving unit driven to rotate the drum containing the laundry; And, And a controller for interlocking with the control assembly to control a supply amount of steam, a steam supply time, or a steam supply cycle provided from the steam supply unit to the tub or drum, and to control the water supply unit and the driving unit, respectively. Washing device, characterized in that configured. The method of claim 9, Washing device, characterized in that the control assembly further comprises a load selector for selecting a load, such as cloth. The method of claim 10, The control assembly further includes a load amount display unit for displaying a load amount selected through the load selection unit. The method of claim 9, The steam providing unit Water is stored, the water supply unit is connected to the water supply pipe, the tub or drum and the case is connected to the steam supply pipe, And a heating heater provided in the case to generate steam by evaporating the stored water. The method of claim 9, The control assembly Washing apparatus further comprises a steam operation display for displaying whether the steam washing progress. The method of claim 9, Washing apparatus further comprises a water level detecting unit for detecting the water level of the water present in the tub. The method of claim 14, And a drainage unit configured to drain the water under the control of the controller when the water level detected by the water level detection unit is greater than or equal to a preset level. The method of claim 9, And a temperature sensing unit configured to sense a temperature inside the tub or the drum and provide the sensing value to the controller. The method of claim 9, The driving unit Washing apparatus, characterized in that consisting of a motor that can rotate at a rotation speed of less than 100rpm.

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