KR101029815B1 - drum type washing machine and control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a drum washing machine and a method for controlling the same. The drum washing machine can calculate an accurate detergent amount by correcting an error value generated according to the hardness of the washing water when calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water stored in the tub. And a control method thereof.

A control method of a drum washing machine according to the present invention is a control method of a washing machine in which washing of laundry is performed through a series of washing processes including washing, rinsing, and dehydration, the first method of calculating hardness of washing water upon initial washing water supply. Hardness calculation step; A second hardness calculation step of calculating the hardness of the wash water in the last rinse; And storing the average value of the first and second hardness in a memory when the difference between the first and second hardness is less than or equal to a predetermined value.

Description

Drum washing machine and control method

The present invention relates to a drum washing machine and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to calculate an accurate detergent amount by correcting an error value of the detergent amount generated according to the hardness of the wash water when calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water stored in the tub. It relates to a drum washing machine to calculate and a control method thereof.

In general, a drum washing machine is a device for washing laundry through a process of washing, rinsing, and dehydrating to remove contaminants from laundry contained in the drum by using water and detergent supplied into the tub.

The inside of the drum washing machine is provided with an electrode sensor that can measure the conductivity of the supplied wash water.

Here, the conductivity of the wash water is measured by an electrode sensor while the wash water and the detergent are supplied to the tub, and the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water is calculated according to the measured conductivity of the wash water. Then, the washing stroke is controlled according to the calculated detergent amount.

However, the conductivity of the wash water changes not only in the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water, but also depending on the hardness of the wash water. Since the hardness of the wash water used in each household is different, the amount of detergent calculated according to the hardness is also different.

For example, in the case of households using harder washing water, even if the amount of detergent dissolved in the washing water is small, the conductivity can be measured due to the ions contained in the washing water, In the case of a large amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water, the conductivity can be measured relatively low.

The present invention is to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention to provide a drum washing machine and a control method that can accurately calculate the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water.

A control method of a drum washing machine according to the present invention is a control method of a washing machine in which laundry is washed through a series of washing processes including washing, rinsing, and dehydration strokes, wherein the washing water is supplied at the beginning of the washing stroke. Calculating a hardness; Calculating a second hardness of the wash water in the last rinse; And storing the average value of the first and second hardness in a memory when the difference between the first and second hardness is less than or equal to a predetermined value.

In addition, when the difference between the first and second hardness is equal to or greater than a set value, the measured first and second hardness are discarded.

Further, the average value of the first hardness and the second hardness is used to correct the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water in the next washing stroke.

In the calculating of the first and second hardness, the conductivity of the wash water is measured using an electrode sensor, and the hardness of the wash water is calculated based on the measured conductivity.

Drum washing machine according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a tub; An electrode sensor provided in the tub and measuring conductivity of the wash water stored in the tub; A memory for storing a first hardness of the wash water calculated at the beginning of the washing stroke and a second hardness of the wash water calculated at the last rinsing; If the difference between the first hardness and the second hardness is less than the set value is provided with a microcomputer for calculating the average value of the first and second hardness in the memory.

In addition, the microcomputer corrects the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water in the next washing stroke by using the average value of the first hardness and the second hardness.

According to the drum washing machine and the control method according to the present invention, by measuring the hardness of the wash water and calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water, the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water can be accurately calculated.

As such, the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water can be accurately calculated, and thus an efficient washing stroke or a rinsing stroke can be performed according to the calculated amount of detergent.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a drum washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a drum washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a cabinet 110 forming an exterior, a tub 120 installed inside the cabinet 110 to store wash water, and a tub 120. ) Is provided with a drum 130 rotatably installed inside the motor 130 and a motor 160 for driving the drum 130.

The cabinet 110 includes a main body 111 forming side, rear and bottom surfaces, a front plate 112 forming a front surface, and a top plate 113 coupled to an upper portion of the main body 111 to form an upper surface of the main body. It may be provided. An inlet 112a is formed in the front plate 112 forming the front surface of the cabinet 110 to inject laundry, and the inlet 112a is opened and closed by a door 115 installed to rotate in the cabinet 110. do.

On the other hand, the tub 120 is provided inside the cabinet 110, the upper portion of the tub 120 is supported on the inner upper portion of the cabinet 110 by a hanging spring 121, the lower portion of the tub 120 is a frick It is supported by the shock damper 122 to reduce the vibration transmitted to the tub 120 during the high-speed rotation of the drum 130.

The drum 130 is rotatably provided inside the tub 120, and a lifter 131 is installed on an inner circumferential surface of the drum 130 to raise the laundry introduced into the drum 130 to a predetermined position, such as dehydration. A plurality of through holes 132 are formed to allow the washing water to escape from the drum 130 in the washing stroke.

In addition, a water supply hose 140 and a water supply valve 141 installed on the water supply hose 140 to supply water from the external water source to the tub 120 in the upper side of the tub 120 are controlled. And, a detergent supply device 142 is installed is supplied detergent so that the water supplied through the water supply hose 140 is introduced into the tub 120 with the detergent. In addition, the tub 120 is provided with a drain hose 150 and a drain pump 151 to discharge the wash water used for washing and rinsing to the outside.

The motor 160 mounted at the rear of the tub 120 is coupled to the drum 130 through the rotation shaft 165 to rotate the drum 130.

The lower side of the tub 120 is provided with a heater 125 for adjusting the water temperature of the wash water, a temperature sensor (not shown) for measuring the water temperature of the wash water, and an electrode sensor 200 for detecting the conductivity of the wash water. Can be.

2 is a perspective view illustrating the electrode sensor 200 in FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 2, the electrode sensor 200 detects the conductivity of the wash water, and the electrode sensor 200 includes two conductive pieces 210 and 220 formed to contact the wash water at predetermined intervals. When the wash water is filled between the two conductive pieces 210 and 220, the conductivity of the wash water between the conductive pieces is measured. In this case, the conductivity of the wash water is affected by the ions dissolved in the wash water. That is, when the detergent is dissolved in the wash water, ions are formed to increase the conductivity of the wash water, and the higher the hardness of the wash water, the higher the conductivity of the wash water is because the ions are contained in the wash water.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a relationship between an electrode sensor and the microcomputer 300.

Referring to FIG. 3, the drum washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a microcomputer 300 that receives the conductivity measured by the electrode sensor 200 and stores the conductivity in the memory 250.

On the other hand, the memory 250 is preferably formed of a non-volatile memory that does not disappear even if the power applied to the drum washing machine is cut off. In addition, the microcomputer 300 may read information stored in the memory 250 and compare the information.

Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating a control method of a drum washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, when the user operates the drum washing machine, the washing water is supplied to the first water level set as the tub 120 (S105), and the first hardness of the washing water supplied to the tub 120 is calculated (S105). S110).

Here, the first hardness of the wash water preferably measures the hardness of the pure wash water without detergent. For example, the hardness of pure wash water is measured by supplying the wash water to the tub 120 by supplying the wash water to a space where a pre-washing detergent of the detergent supply device 142 which is not commonly used by the user is stored. can do. This first hardness is to measure the conductivity of the wash water applied to the electrode sensor 200, specifically calculated based on the conductivity of the wash water. The first hardness of the wash water calculated as described above is stored in the memory 250.

On the other hand, the above-described first water level may be determined in an amount less than the amount of wash water corresponding to the laundry object to be washed. That is, since the first water level corresponds to the amount of water supplied to measure the hardness of the pure wash water without detergent, the first water level is the minimum water level, or the amount of water supplied only for a predetermined time such as 3 to 10 seconds. Can be determined.

Next, the wash water is supplied to the second water level set at step S115.

Specifically, the water supply valve 141 is opened and the washing water is introduced into the tub 120 together with the laundry detergent while the washing water passes through the detergent supply device 142. As described above, while the detergent is dissolved in the wash water, the washing water is supplied to the tub 120 so that the water level rises from the first water level to the second water level. ).

Here, the second water level preferably corresponds to the amount of wash water corresponding to the laundry object accommodated in the drum 130. That is, the second water level is determined as the water level corresponding to the amount of the washing water appropriately set according to the amount of the laundry object. Thus, the second water level becomes higher than the first water level.

On the other hand, when the wash water is supplied to the tub 120 so that the water level rises from the first water level to the second water level, the conductivity of the wash water measured by the electrode sensor 200 becomes gradually smaller. This is because the amount of detergent put into the tub 120 is constant, but because the washing water is continuously supplied to the second water level, the concentration of the detergent becomes softer as time passes. If the wash water is continuously supplied to the second water level and the conductivity of the wash water does not change, this means that no detergent is added.

Next, after the drum 130 rotates and the washing stroke proceeds, the conductivity of the washing water is measured once again after a predetermined time, for example, about 5 to 10 minutes (SS125).

When the drum 130 rotates for about 5 to 10 minutes, the laundry is stirred, and the laundry is not only formed, but the detergent is evenly dissolved in the wash water. As described above, when the conductivity of the wash water is measured by the electrode sensor 200 while the detergent is sufficiently dissolved in the wash water, the conductivity of the wash water in the state where the wash water is dissolved can be accurately measured. Then, the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water is calculated based on the measured conductivity of the wash water (S130).

When the detergent is dissolved in the wash water, since the substance forming the detergent melts ions to form ions, the electrode sensor 200 measures the predetermined conductivity, so that the amount of detergent can be calculated based on the data.

The amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water is calculated from a detergent amount determination table previously input. The detergent amount determination table is a table showing the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water according to the conductivity of the wash water.

The washing pattern is set according to the amount of detergent thus calculated. Here, the washing pattern is a concept including a factor that may affect washing power in washing such as washing water level, washing time, and heating time of the heater in the washing process. For example, as the amount of detergent contained in the wash water increases, the washing time and the heating time of the heater are reduced.

In addition, a rinsing pattern is set according to the calculated detergent amount, and when the washing stroke is completed, a rinsing stroke is performed according to the rinsing pattern.

Here, the rinsing pattern is a concept including a factor that may affect rinsing, such as a rinsing level, a rinsing time, a rinsing frequency, and the like. For example, the more the detergent amount calculated, the higher the rinsing water level, and the rinsing time is set to increase.

In particular, the rinsing level in the initial rinsing during the rinsing cycle is determined according to the calculated detergent amount.

After the washing (S135) is finished, the rinsing stroke is started, the first rinsing is performed during the rinsing stroke (S140).

The conductivity is measured by the electrode sensor 200 even in the first rinsing performed immediately after washing, and the amount of detergent dissolved in the washing water is calculated according to the conductivity of the washing water (S150).

The reason for calculating the amount of detergent in the first rinse is to determine whether to perform an additional rinse based on the calculated amount of detergent.

If the calculated detergent amount is less than the set value, the final rinsing proceeds. If the calculated detergent amount is more than the set value, further rinsing is performed between the initial rinsing and the last rinsing.

On the other hand, in the case of rinsing, the drum is continuously rotated in one direction (for example, clockwise) for a predetermined time, and then the drum is stopped and the drum is rotated in the other direction (for example, counterclockwise). Rinsing will be performed. However, when the rinsing is performed as described above, the laundry objects are rotated only in one direction or the other direction continuously for a predetermined time, and the laundry objects are agglomerated with each other, and the detergent is not dissolved between the clothes and the clothes of the laundry object.

Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention may include a so-called 'swing operation' step to prevent the laundry object from agglomeration when the rinsing is performed so that the detergent does not remain between the clothes. Here, the swing operation is a name arbitrarily generated in order to refer to an operation step to be described below, and the operation step to be described later is not limited to a name called a swing operation.

 5 and 6 are front views showing the movement of the drum 130 in accordance with the swing operation step described above. In the swing operation described later, the drum is not continuously rotated in only one direction, and the drum is repeatedly rotated in one direction and the other direction.

Specifically, in the case of rotating the drum 130, when the drum is rotated by one 360 ° rotation, the swinging motion rotates the drum at an angle of about 360 ° or less when the drum is rotated in one direction or the other direction. Preferably, it is rotated at an angle of about 180 ° or less.

For example, the drum is rotated at an angle of about 180 ° or less in one direction, the drum is returned to its original position, and then rotated at an angle of about 180 ° or less in the other direction. When the swing operation is repeated, the clothes inside the drum are prevented from continuously rotating in only one direction, thereby preventing the laundry objects from being gathered together during the rotation of the drum. Hereinafter, a swing operation will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the swing motion is rotated at an angle of 180 ° or less as an example. However, the swing motion is not limited thereto, and the swing motion may be rotated at an angle of 360 ° or less as described above.

Referring to FIG. 5, a plurality of lifters 131 are provided inside the drum 130 to lift and drop the laundry object 1 upward. Although three lifters 131 are shown in the figure, the number of lifters is not limited and may be appropriately modified.

Before the start of rotation of the drum 130, the laundry object 1 is generally located at the bottom of the drum 130 as shown in FIG. Subsequently, when the drum 130 rotates in one direction (for example, clockwise direction, A direction in the drawing), the laundry object is rotated by the friction force between the lifter 131 and the inner surface of the drum 130. Ascend in the direction.

In FIG. 6, the laundry object indicated by the hidden line represents a state in which the laundry object is raised by the rotation of the drum 130. Subsequently, when the drum 130 rotates at a predetermined angle α or more, the laundry object 1 no longer comes into close contact with the inner circumferential surface of the drum 130 and falls toward the lower portion of the drum 130. If they fall together, the bundles between the clothes will be released. In addition, since the clothes fall in the watered state for rinsing, the clothes fall on the watered water, and when the water falls on the water, it is possible to separate the detergent or the like more easily by the impact with the water. Become.

On the other hand, when the drum 130 is rotated in this way, the rotation angle α of the drum 130 in which the garment closely adhered to the drum 130 falls downward is the amount of clothes accommodated in the drum 130 and the drum ( Although not constant according to the rotational speed of 130, etc., when the rotation angle α of the drum 130 is approximately 100 ° to 150 °, or approximately 120 °, the garment falls.

Furthermore, this swing operation can be implemented in various ways. For example, the drum may only be rotated in one direction below 180 °, or the drum may be rotated continuously in one direction and the other, or the drum may be rotated a predetermined number of times below 180 ° in one direction and then 180 degrees in the other direction. It is also possible to rotate the drum 130 a predetermined number of times or less, or add an operation of rotating the drum 130 by 180 degrees or more in one direction or the other direction in the middle of the swing operation.

On the other hand, this so-called swing operation can be implemented anywhere in the rinsing stroke, but preferably is performed before or after sensing the conductivity by the electrode sensor 200. If the swing motion is implemented before the conductivity is detected by the electrode sensor 200, the conductivity can be accurately detected, and if the swing motion is realized after the conductivity is sensed, the performing session is more smoothly performed in the rinsing motion. It becomes possible to remove the detergent. This swing operation, of course, may be performed both before and after sensing the conductivity.

Looking at the step of sensing the conductivity by the electrode sensor 200 in the rinsing cycle of Figure 4, in the step of calculating the first rinsing (S140) corresponding to the initial portion of the rinsing course (S140) and the second hardness of the wash water to be described later (S170) It will detect conductivity. Therefore, it is possible to perform the swing operation before and after the first rinse (S140) and before and after the step (S170) of calculating the second hardness of the wash water, and it is also possible to add the swing operation only to either side. .

Last rinsing is performed at the end of the rinsing cycle (S160).

In the final rinse as well, the conductivity of the wash water is measured. The measurement of the conductivity of the wash water in the last rinse is preferably done immediately after the water supply for the last rinse. This is to measure the conductivity of the wash water in a state where the wash water supplied for the final rinse is not mixed with the detergent.

Based on the measured conductivity of the wash water, it is possible to calculate a second hardness of the wash water that is not mixed with the detergent. The calculated second hardness is stored in the memory 250.

The microcomputer 300 compares the difference between the first hardness calculated at the beginning of the washing process and the second hardness calculated at the last rinsing (S180).

If the difference between the first and second hardness is less than or equal to the set value, the average value of the first and second hardness is stored in the memory (S190), and if the difference between the first and second hardness is greater than or equal to the set value, the calculated first value is calculated. After discarding the first hardness and the second hardness, it is calculated again in the next washing stroke (S200).

The reason why the average value of the first and second hardness values calculated in this way is stored in the memory 250 is that the conductivity measured by the electrode sensor 200 is also affected by the hardness of water. That is, the high hardness of the wash water means that there are many ions contained in the wash water, and when the ions are contained in the wash water, the conductivity of the wash water is increased.

Therefore, when calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water in the next washing stroke, it is possible to accurately calculate the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water by correcting the conductivity of the wash water according to the hardness of the wash water.

The hardness of the wash water used in each household is different. However, according to the washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, even if the hardness of the wash water used in each household is different, the optimum amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water is calculated so that the optimal washing or rinsing stroke is performed according to the amount of the detergent. You can control it.

On the other hand, in the above embodiment, the so-called 'swing operation' of the present invention has been described as being provided only in the rinsing course, but is not limited to such a swing operation may be included in the washing course, the drying course in the course of the washing machine. When the washing course includes a swinging operation, it is possible to prevent the clothes from being tangled during washing, thereby improving washing performance. Also, when the swinging course is included during the drying course, the clothes can be taken out more smoothly when drying is completed.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a drum washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a perspective view showing an electrode sensor installed in the drum washing machine shown in FIG.

3 is a block diagram showing a relationship between an electrode sensor, a microcomputer, and a memory;

4 is a flow chart showing a control method of the drum washing machine shown in FIG.

5 and 6 are front views continuously showing a state in which the drum swings according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (16)

In the control method of the washing machine washing the laundry through a series of washing process consisting of washing, rinsing, dehydration, Calculating a first hardness of the wash water when the wash water is supplied at the beginning of the washing stroke; Calculating a second hardness of the wash water in the last rinse; Rotating the drum at an angle of one rotation or less before or after the second hardness calculation; And storing the average value of the first and second hardness in a memory if the difference between the first and second hardness is less than or equal to a predetermined value. The method of claim 1, And if the difference between the first and second hardness is greater than or equal to a set value, the calculated first and second hardness are discarded. The method of claim 1, And controlling the amount of detergent when calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water in the next washing stroke by using the average value of the first and second hardness. The method of claim 1, The calculating of the first and second hardness may include measuring conductivity of the washing water using an electrode sensor, and calculating hardness of the washing water based on the measured conductivity. delete The method of claim 1, The drum washing machine, characterized in that for rotating in one direction, or alternately in one direction and the other direction at an angle of less than 180 °. The method of claim 1, Rotating the drum at an angle of 180 ° or less alternately in one direction and the other direction before or after calculating the second hardness, and rotating the drum at least 180 ° in one direction and the other direction. Control method of a drum washing machine, characterized in that. The method of claim 1, The control method of the drum washing machine, characterized in that the calculation of the second hardness in the last rinse is performed immediately after the water supply for the last rinse. In the control method of the washing machine washing the laundry through a series of washing process consisting of washing, rinsing, dehydration, Calculating a first hardness of the wash water when the wash water is supplied at the beginning of the washing stroke; Calculating the amount of detergent dissolved in the wash water in the first rinse of the rinse stroke; Rotating the drum at an angle of one rotation or less before or after calculating the detergent amount; Calculating a second hardness of the wash water in the last rinse; And storing the average value of the first and second hardness in a memory if the difference between the first and second hardness is less than or equal to a predetermined value. The method of claim 9, The amount of detergent is calculated based on the conductivity of the wash water measured by the electrode sensor control method of the drum washing machine. delete 10. The method of claim 9, The drum washing machine, characterized in that for rotating in one direction, or alternately in one direction and the other direction at an angle of less than 180 °. 10. The method of claim 9, Rotating the drum at an angle of 180 ° or less alternately in one direction and the other direction before or after calculating the amount of detergent, and rotating the drum at least 180 ° in one direction and the other direction. The control method of the drum washing machine. The method of claim 9, And if the amount of detergent calculated in the first rinse is equal to or greater than a set value, further rinsing is performed between the initial rinse and the last rinse. delete delete

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