KR102560665B1 - Controlling Method of LAUNDRY TREATING APPARATUS - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a control method of a laundry treatment apparatus capable of reducing a washing time and increasing energy efficiency by maintaining a rotational speed and direction of a drum while performing a rinsing cycle or a spin-drying cycle.

Description

Control method of laundry treatment device {Controlling Method of LAUNDRY TREATING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to a control method for a laundry treatment device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a control method of a laundry treatment apparatus capable of reducing a washing time by preventing rotation of a drum during a rinsing process.

In general, a laundry treatment device refers to a device capable of washing, drying, or washing or drying clothes. Here, the laundry treatment device may perform only washing or drying functions, or may perform both washing and drying functions.

Recently, a washing machine equipped with a steam supply device and having refresh functions such as removing wrinkles from clothes, odor removal, and removing static electricity has been popularized.

When the laundry treatment device is provided as a washing machine, it performs a washing operation for removing foreign substances from clothes, a rinsing operation for separating foreign substances and detergent from clothes, and a spin-drying operation for removing moisture from clothes.

In a conventional laundry treatment apparatus, a drum is agitated and rotated in a washing cycle or the drum is intermittently rotated in one direction to provide stretching force and frictional force to clothes, resulting in an effect of rubbing the clothes with detergent and water.

In the rinsing cycle, water is supplied again, the drum is rotated to remove foreign substances and detergent from clothes, and the water is drained to discharge foreign substances and detergent to the outside of the clothes treatment device.

In the spin-drying cycle, the drum is rotated at high speed to remove moisture from the clothes by providing strong centrifugal force to the clothes.

On the other hand, in the conventional laundry treatment apparatus, excessive vibration is prevented in advance by intermittently rotating the drum before entering the dehydration cycle to detect unbalance of the clothes.

Also, in the conventional laundry treatment apparatus, water is removed from the clothes by rotating the drum at high speed before supplying water in the rinsing cycle. This is to prevent contamination of the re-supplyed water by discharging the remaining detergent dissolved water and foreign substances from the clothes during the washing cycle or the previous rinsing cycle.

Therefore, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a process of detecting unbalance of clothes by intermittently rotating the drum even before starting the rinse cycle, and when the rinse cycle is repeated multiple times, the process of detecting unbalance is also performed multiple times.

Such a conventional laundry treatment apparatus can prevent excessive vibration in a rinsing or spin-drying operation beforehand. However, since the imbalance must always be sensed in the rinsing or spin-drying, there is a problem in that the washing time is delayed accordingly.

In addition, since the imbalance sensing process is for stability, there is a problem in that power is consumed regardless of washing efficiency or rinsing efficiency.

In addition, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus has a problem in that washing time is delayed because the drum is intermittently rotated or stirred and rotated repeatedly during the rinsing process.

An object of the present invention is to perform dehydration in a rinsing cycle or to shorten an entry time when performing a dehydration cycle.

An object of the present invention is to block or prevent the occurrence of excessive vibration even if the process of detecting an unbalanced state or the amount of laundry is omitted before dehydration.

An object of the present invention is to solve the problem of shortening the washing time by shortening or omitting the preparation time for rotating the drum at a high speed again.

An object of the present invention is to prevent clothes from being separated from the inner wall of a drum in a rinsing cycle or a spin cycle, thereby maintaining a balanced state.

An object of the present invention is to solve the problem of continuously performing rinsing and spin-drying without stopping the rotation of the drum.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a laundry treatment apparatus including a tub accommodating water, a drum rotatably provided in the tub and accommodating clothes, a driving unit coupled to the tub to rotate the drum, a water supply valve communicated with the tub and provided to supply water to the tub, and a drain pump draining water from the tub.

The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus includes a first intermittent rotation step of intermittently rotating the drum to detect the amount of the clothes (amount of dry fabric), a water supply step of opening the water supply valve to supply water to the tub according to the amount of dry fabric, a second intermittent rotation step of intermittently rotating the drum to separate foreign substances from the clothes, a drainage step of operating the drain pump to drain water from the tub, and a continuous rotation step of removing water and foreign substances from the clothes by rotating the drum. can include

In addition, the continuous rotation step may continuously rotate the drum to prevent the rotation of the drum from being stopped or the rotation direction of the drum being changed.

In the continuous rotation step, the drum may be continuously rotated even when water is supplied to or drained from the tub.

In the continuous rotation step, the drum may be rotated at a speed higher than a minimum speed at which the clothes are prevented from being separated from the inner wall of the drum.

On the other hand, a third intermittent rotation step of intermittently rotating the drum after the drainage step to detect the amount (wetted amount) or unbalance of the clothes, and the continuous rotation step may continuously rotate the drum at or above the minimum speed from the third intermittent rotation step to the end.

Specifically, the continuous rotation step may include, after the third intermittent rotation step, a rinsing/drying step of removing water from the clothes by rotating the drum at a first speed higher than the minimum speed, a rotational water supply step of supplying water to the tub, a rinsing step of rotating the drum at a second speed or more lower than the first speed to remove water and foreign substances from the clothes, and a rotation draining step of draining water into the tub. The rotational speed of the drum may be prevented from being reduced below the minimum speed until the draining step is completed.

The rotation supplying step may be performed when the rotational speed of the drum reaches the minimum speed or decreases to a reference speed higher than the minimum speed after the third intermittent rotation step.

On the other hand, the rotational water supplying step may be performed when the rotational speed of the drum reaches the minimum speed or decreases below a reference speed higher than the minimum speed during the rinsing and dewatering step.

The continuous rotation step may include re-performing the rinsing/drying step immediately after the end of the rotation/draining step.

The rinsing/drying step may be performed when the water level in the tub reaches a reference water level or less during the rotation/draining step.

The continuous rotation step may further include a main spin step of removing water from the clothes by rotating the drum at a third speed higher than the first speed or higher after the rinse/dry spin step, and in the continuous rotation step, stopping the rotation of the drum or changing the rotation direction of the drum from the third intermittent rotation step until the end of the main spin step may be prevented.

The laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention may further include a circulation pump for circulating water discharged from the tub back to the tub. At this time, the circulation pump may operate at least once in the rinsing step.

The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may include a washing operation of supplying the water and detergent to the tub to separate foreign substances from the clothes, a rinsing operation of supplying the water to the tub to remove detergent or foreign substances from the clothes, and a spin-drying operation of removing water from the clothes by rotating the drum at a high speed, and the rinsing cycle may include continuously rotating the drum in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum.

The washing cycle may further include a draining step of draining the water and foreign substances, and the rinsing cycle may further include a sensing step of detecting an amount of dampness in the drum or an unbalance of the clothes after the draining step, and after the sensing step, the drum may be continuously rotated in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum until at least the end of the rinsing step.

In the rinsing cycle, water may be supplied to the tub or drained from the tub while the clothes are attached to the drum and rotated.

The drum may be continuously rotated in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum from the rinsing cycle to the end of the spin-drying cycle.

A laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may include a cabinet having an opening, a tub accommodated in the cabinet and having an inlet communicating with the opening, and accommodating water, a drum rotatably provided in the tub and accommodating clothes, a driving unit coupled to the tub to rotate the drum, a water supply valve provided to supply water to the tub, a drain pump provided to drain water to the tub, and a control unit operating the drive unit, the water supply valve, and the drain pump. there is

After water is supplied to and drained from the tub, the control unit operates the drive unit to rotate the drum to detect the amount of fabric of the clothes or whether the clothes are unbalanced.

The present invention has the effect of shortening the entry time when performing dehydration in the rinsing cycle or performing the dehydration cycle.

The present invention has an effect of blocking or preventing the occurrence of excessive vibration even if the process of detecting an unbalanced state or the amount of laundry is omitted before dehydration.

The present invention has the effect of shortening the washing time by shortening or omitting the preparation time for rotating the drum again at high speed.

The present invention has an effect of maintaining the balance state as it is by preventing clothes from being separated from the inner wall of the drum in the rinsing cycle or the spin cycle cycle.

The present invention has the effect of continuously performing rinsing and spin-drying without stopping the rotation of the drum.

1 shows an embodiment of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention.
2 shows the internal structure of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention.
Fig. 3 shows the control unit of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention.
Figure 4 shows the rotational motion of the drum of the present invention.
5 is a graph showing the rinsing step of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention and the conventional laundry treatment apparatus.
6 is a graph showing repetition of the rinsing step in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention and the conventional laundry treatment apparatus.
Fig. 7 is a graph showing the laundry course of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention.
8 shows a control method of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention.
9 shows experimental results showing the effect of the method for controlling the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments disclosed in this specification will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification, the same or similar reference numerals are given to the same or similar components even in different embodiments, and the description is replaced with the first description. Singular expressions used herein include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In addition, in describing the embodiments disclosed in this specification, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known technology may obscure the gist of the embodiment disclosed in this specification, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. In addition, it should be noted that the accompanying drawings are only for easy understanding of the embodiments disclosed in this specification, and should not be construed as limiting the technical idea disclosed in this specification by the accompanying drawings.

1 shows an embodiment of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows the internal structure of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention.

In the Cartesian coordinate system shown in the figure, the positive and negative directions of the x-axis are defined as the front and rear of the laundry treatment apparatus, respectively, and the positive and negative directions of the z-axis are defined as the upper and lower directions of the laundry treatment apparatus, respectively. In addition, the positive direction of the y-axis is defined as the right side of the laundry treatment apparatus, and the negative direction of the y-axis is defined as the left direction of the laundry treatment apparatus.

Referring to FIG. 1 , the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of the present invention may include a cabinet 10 forming an exterior and a clothes receiving portion 20' provided inside the cabinet 10 to accommodate clothes.

The cabinet 10 forms an exterior of the laundry handling apparatus 1 and may include an opening 12 through which clothes can enter and exit and a door 13 opening and closing the opening 12 . The door 13 is rotatably connected to the front surface of the cabinet 10, and the opening 12 can be opened and closed according to the rotation of the door 13.

On the other hand, in FIG. 1, the laundry handling apparatus is shown in which the opening 12 and the door 13 are formed on the front surface of the cabinet 10, but this is only an example, and the opening 12 and the door 13 may be formed on the upper surface of the cabinet 10.

When the door 13 is coupled to the opening 12, it may be locked so as not to open the opening 12 arbitrarily. The door 13 may lock the opening 12 by a solenoid, a direct fastening means, or the like.

The front of the cabinet 10 may include a detergent box 14 that accommodates detergent or fabric softener and is detachably accommodated in the cabinet, and a control panel 16 capable of inputting an operation command to the laundry treatment apparatus or displaying the status of the laundry treatment apparatus.

The detergent box 14 and the control panel 16 may be disposed above the opening 12 so that the user can easily grip or contact them.

The detergent box 14 is provided to be drawn out forward, and can store powder detergent or liquid detergent therein. For example, the detergent box may be a drawer type.

The control panel 16 may be provided on one side of the detergent box 14, and may include an input unit 18 for receiving an operation command including a washing course and option information related to washing from a user, and a display unit 17 for displaying the input information and the washing progress.

The input unit 18 may be a button type or a rotary knob type, and may be provided as a touch panel. The display unit 17 may include a display unit having liquid crystal and a speaker that emits sound, but may be provided in any shape as long as it can display the state of the laundry treatment apparatus 1, and may be provided integrally with the input unit 18.

Meanwhile, the control panel 16 may include a control unit P for controlling the laundry treatment apparatus 1 .

The control unit may receive power from an external power source and control electric components of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 described later.

At this time, since the electrical components (hereinafter referred to as load units) are connected in parallel to the control unit, each load unit (drive unit, water supply valve, communication module, etc.) can operate independently of each other.

The clothes accommodating portion 20 ′ accommodated in the cabinet 10 may include a tub 20 for storing water and a drum 30 rotatably provided inside the tub 20 to accommodate clothes.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the tub 20 is provided inside the cabinet 10 and may form a space in which wash water is stored. For example, the tub may have a cylindrical shape.

The tub 20 may include a tub input port 21 through which clothes can be drawn in and out and a tub support 23 fixing the tub 20 to the inside of the cabinet 10 . The tub inlet 21 may communicate with the inlet 12 . The tub support 23 is provided below the tub 20 and can damp vibrations generated from the tub 20 . For example, the tub support may include a damper, a spring, and the like.

The tub 20 may further include a water level sensor 90 on one side of the tub for measuring the water level inside the tub. The water level sensor 90 may include an extension tube extending from the lower end of the tub to an upper end, a diaphragm provided by sealing an upper end of the extension tube, and a sensor for detecting a frequency of the dia frame.

The drum 30 is rotatably provided inside the tub 20 and may include a drum inlet 31 through which clothes can be drawn in and out. For example, the drum may have a cylindrical shape. The drum inlet 31 may communicate with the inlet 12 and the tub inlet 21 . Accordingly, clothes may be introduced into the drum 30 through the inlet 12, the tub inlet 21, and the drum inlet 31 in sequence.

Meanwhile, a gasket 19 may be further provided between the inlet 12 of the cabinet 10 and the inlet 21 of the tub 20 . The gasket 19 can prevent wash water inside the tub 20 from leaking into the cabinet 10 and prevent vibration generated in the tub 20 from being transmitted to the cabinet 10 . For example, the gasket may be formed of an elastic member.

A plurality of through holes 33 communicating with the tub 20 may be formed on the inner circumferential surface of the drum 30 . The wash water accommodated inside the tub 20 may be supplied into the drum 30 through the through holes 33, and the wash water inside the drum 30 may be discharged to the tub 20 through the through holes 33.

Meanwhile, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of the present invention may include a drive unit 40 coupled to the tub 20 to rotate the drum 30, a water supply unit 70 for supplying wash water into the tub 20, and a drainage unit 72 for discharging wash water from the tub 20 to the outside.

The drain unit 72 may include a drain pipe communicating with the tub 20, and may further include a drain pump 72a connected to the drain pipe to provide power for draining water to the tub 20.

The water supply unit 70 may include a water supply pipe 70a for supplying water to the tub 20 and a water supply valve 70b for opening and closing the water supply pipe 70a, and the water supply pipe 70a may communicate with the detergent box 14.

Accordingly, the detergent box 14 may be provided to communicate with the tub 20 so as to automatically supply detergent to the tub 20 when water is supplied.

Meanwhile, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of the present invention may further include a circulation unit 80 for re-circulating the water drained from the tub 20 . The circulation unit may include a circulation passage 81 having both ends connected to the tub 20 and a circulation pump 82 providing power to the circulation passage.

The circulation pump 82 communicates with the bottom surface of the tub 20 to pressurize wash water, and the circulation passage 81 has one side connected to the circulation pump and the other side connected to the gasket 19 to spray wash water into the drum.

However, since the above-described circulation passage and circulation pump are required for spraying wash water stored in the tub, the case of spraying wash water into the drum through the spray water supply passage connected to a water supply source outside the cabinet is not excluded.

That is, if the jet water supply passage has one side connected to the water supply source and the other side connected to the tub and provided with a nozzle capable of spraying wash water into the drum, the wash water can be sprayed into the drum during the filtration motion and the squeeze motion.

In addition, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of the present invention may further include balancers 51 and 53 for damping vibration generated in the drum 30 . The balancers 51 and 53 can remove the eccentricity of the drum 30 that occurs when clothes are biased to one side inside the drum 30 . That is, the balancers 51 and 53 can attenuate the unbalance of the drum 30 by moving to a specific position under the control of the microcomputer.

At this time, the balancer may be provided at the front and rear of the drum 30, respectively, or provided only at any one of the front or rear of the drum 30. For example, the balancer may include a front balancer 51 and a rear balancer 53 provided at the front and rear of the drum 30, respectively. The balancers 51 and 53 may be ball balancers, liquid balancers, and the like.

The driving unit 40 is provided outside the tub 20 and may be connected to the drum 30 by being coupled to or penetrating the rear surface of the tub 20 . The driver 40 is fixed to the rear surface of the tub 20 and can convert electrical energy into mechanical energy. That is, the drum 30 can be rotated by receiving current from the outside.

The driving unit 40 may include a stator 41 generating a magnetic field, a rotor 43 rotating by the magnetic field inside the stator 41, and a drum 30 penetrating the rear surface of the tub 20 and a rotating shaft 45 connecting the rotor 43.

The driving unit may be a brush-less direct current (BLDC) motor. In this case, the stator 41 is composed of a coil and the rotor 43 may be a permanent magnet. Meanwhile, a rotation shaft bearing 25 rotatably supporting the rotation shaft 45 may be further provided on the bottom surface of the tub 20 .

Figure 3 shows the configuration of the control unit for controlling the load of the present invention.

The control unit P may be provided on a control panel or the like to receive a command to operate the laundry treatment device through the input unit 16 and perform a washing course and option. That is, the control unit P may be provided to control the water supply valve 70b, the drain pump 70a, and the driving unit 40 using water level information detected by the water level sensor 90 while performing the determined washing course and option.

Also, the control unit P may provide the current state of the laundry treatment device through the display unit 17 .

Accordingly, when clothes are put into the drum 30 and an operation command is input to the input unit 16, the control unit P supplies water to the tub 20, and then drives the driving unit 40 to agitate the drum 30 left and right or rotate it in one direction to perform a washing cycle, a rinse cycle, and a dehydration cycle.

4 illustrates various drum driving motions used in a control method of a washing cycle or a rinsing cycle of the washing machine according to the present invention.

The drum driving motion means a combination of the rotational direction and rotational speed of the drum, and the direction and point at which clothes fall inside the drum change due to the drum driving motion, and accordingly, the flow of the clothes inside the drum changes. The drum driving motion is implemented by controlling the drive unit.

When the drum rotates, the clothes are lifted by the lift provided on the inner circumferential surface of the drum, so that the shock applied to the clothes can be varied by controlling the rotational speed and direction of the drum. That is, mechanical forces such as friction between clothes, friction between clothes and washing water, and impact from falling clothes can be varied. In other words, it is possible to vary the degree of tapping or rubbing the clothes for washing, and to vary the degree of dispersion or turning of the clothes.

Therefore, the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention can treat clothes with optimum mechanical power by varying the drum driving motion according to the type of clothes, the degree of contamination of clothes, each process, and the detailed steps forming each process. As a result, washing efficiency of clothes can be improved.

In order to implement these various drum driving motions, it is preferable that the drive unit 40 be a direct-coupled motor. That is, it is preferable that the stator of the motor is fixed to the rear of the tub 20 and the rotor of the motor directly drives the drum 30 by rotating. This is because the drum driving motion can be controlled immediately by controlling the rotation direction and torque of the motor to prevent time delay or backlash as much as possible.

Figure 4 (a) is a view showing the rolling motion (rolling motion). The rolling motion is a motion controlled by the driving unit 40 to rotate the drum 30 in one direction so that the clothes on the inner circumferential surface of the drum fall to the lowest point of the drum at a position less than about 90 degrees in the rotational direction of the drum.

That is, when the driving unit 40 rotates the drum at about 40 RPM, the clothing located at the lowest point of the drum 30 rises to a predetermined height along the rotational direction of the drum 30 and then moves from the lowest point of the drum to less than about 90 degrees in the rotational direction. It will flow to the lowest point of the drum as it rolls in position. Visually, when the drum rotates clockwise, the garments continuously roll in the third quadrant of the drum.

Clothes are washed through friction with water, friction between clothes, and friction with the inner circumferential surface of the drum through the rolling motion. In addition, through this motion, the clothes are sufficiently turned over, so that the effect of gently scrubbing the clothes can be obtained.

Here, the drum RPM is determined in relation to the radius of the drum. That is, as the RPM of the drum increases, centrifugal force is generated on the clothes in the drum. Due to the size difference between the centrifugal force and gravity, the flow of clothes inside the drum is changed. Of course, the rotational force of the drum and the frictional force between the drum and the clothes should also be considered.

Therefore, in the rolling motion, the RPM of the drum is determined so that the centrifugal force and the friction force are less than the gravitational force (1G).

Figure 4 (b) is a view showing a tumbling motion (tumbling motion).

The tumbling motion is a motion in which the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 in one direction and the clothes on the inner circumferential surface of the drum fall to the lowest point of the drum at a position of about 90 to 110 degrees in the rotational direction of the drum. The tumbling motion is a drum driving motion generally used during washing and rinsing because mechanical force is generated by simply controlling the drum to rotate in one direction at an appropriate RPM.

That is, clothes put into the drum 30 are positioned at the lowest point of the drum 30 before the drive unit 40 is driven. When the drive unit 40 provides torque to the drum 30, the drum 30 rotates, and a lift provided on the inner circumferential surface of the drum moves clothes from the lowest point in the drum to a predetermined height. If the drive unit 40 rotates the drum 30 at about 46 RPM, clothes fall toward the lowest point of the drum at a position about 90 to 110 degrees in the rotational direction from the lowest point of the drum.

In the tumbling motion, the RPM of the drum is determined so that a centrifugal force greater than that in the rolling motion is generated, but less than gravity.

Visually, the tumbling motion is in the form of moving from the third quadrant to a part of the second quadrant at the lowest point of the drum when the drum rotates in a clockwise direction, and then falling from the inner circumferential surface of the drum to the lowest point of the drum.

Therefore, since the tumbling motion allows clothes to be washed by friction with water and impact force caused by falling, a mechanical force greater than that of the mechanical force in the rolling motion can be provided to the clothes. In addition, since the motion falls outside the drum to some extent, it has an effect of separating tangled clothes and distributing the clothes.

Figure 4 (c) is a diagram showing a step motion (step motion). The step motion is a motion controlled by the drive unit 40 to rotate the drum 30 in one direction so that the clothes on the inner circumferential surface of the drum fall from the highest point (approximately 180 degrees) in the rotational direction of the drum to the lowest point of the drum.

When the drive unit 40 rotates the drum 30 at about 60 RPM or more, clothes can be rotated without falling by centrifugal force. The step motion is a motion that maximizes the impact force on clothes by rotating the drum at a speed at which clothes do not fall from the inner circumferential surface of the drum by centrifugal force and then rapidly braking the drum.

In the step motion, the drive unit 40 rotates the drum at a speed (about 60 RPM or more) at which clothes do not fall from the outer circumferential surface of the drum by centrifugal force, and then supplies reverse torque to the drum 30 when the clothes are located near the highest point of the drum (rotation direction of 180 degrees).

Therefore, after the clothing rises from the lowest point of the drum 30 along the rotational direction of the drum, it falls from the highest point to the lowest point of the drum 30 at the moment when the drum is stopped by the reverse torque of the drive unit 40, so that the step motion is a motion of washing by the impact force generated in the process of the clothes inside the drum falling with the maximum drop. The mechanical force generated by this step motion is greater than that of the aforementioned rolling motion or tumbling motion.

Visually, the step motion is in the form of moving from the lowest point of the drum to the highest point of the drum through the 3rd quadrant to the 2nd quadrant when the drum rotates clockwise, and then suddenly deviating from the inner circumferential surface of the drum and falling to the lowest point of the drum. Therefore, since the falling distance inside the drum in step motion is the largest, mechanical force can be provided more effectively when the amount of fabric is small.

On the other hand, it is preferable that the drive unit 40 is braked in reverse phase for braking of the drum. The negative phase braking is a method of braking the motor by generating rotational force in the opposite direction to the direction in which the motor is rotating. In order to induce rotational force in a direction opposite to that in which the motor is rotating, a phase of current supplied to the motor may be reversed, and the negative phase braking enables sudden braking of the motor. Therefore, the negative phase braking is the most suitable braking method for the step motion that gives a strong impact to clothes.

Thereafter, the drive unit 40 again applies torque to the drum 30 to raise the clothes at the lowest point of the drum to the highest point. That is, step motion is implemented by applying torque to rotate in a clockwise direction, momentarily applying torque to rotate in a counterclockwise direction to make a sudden stop, and then applying torque to rotate in a clockwise direction again.

After all, the step motion is a motion in which, when the drum rotates, washing water flowing into a through hole provided in an inner wall of the drum is rubbed with clothes, and when the clothes are located at the highest point of the drum, they are dropped and washed by an impact force.

Figure 4 (d) is a diagram showing a swing motion (swing motion). The swing motion is a motion controlled so that the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 in both directions so that clothes fall after passing a point of 90 degrees in the rotational direction of the drum.

That is, when the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 counterclockwise at about 40 RPM, the clothes located at the lowest point of the drum 30 rise to a predetermined height in the counterclockwise direction. At this time, the driving unit stops rotation of the drum after the clothes pass through the 90 degree point in the counterclockwise direction of the drum so that the clothes fall in the direction of the lowest point of the drum after passing through the 90 degree point in the counterclockwise direction of the drum.

Thereafter, the drive unit 40 rotates the drum 30 clockwise at about 40 RPM so that the falling clothes rise clockwise to a predetermined height along the rotational direction of the drum. Meanwhile, the driving unit 40 stops the rotation of the drum after the clothes pass the 90 degree clockwise point of the drum so that the clothes fall in the direction of the lowest point of the drum from the position passing the 90 degree clockwise point of the drum.

That is, the swing motion is a motion in which rotation and stop of the drum in one direction and rotation and stop in the reverse direction are repeated. Visually, clothes rise from the third quadrant of the drum to part of the second quadrant, fall gently, and then rise from the fourth quadrant of the drum to part of the first quadrant.

At this time, the braking of the driving unit 40 minimizes the load generated on the driving unit 40 and minimizes the mechanical wear of the driving unit 40 by using the power generation braking, and at the same time, it is possible to adjust the impact applied to the clothes.

The power generation braking is a braking method using the fact that a motor acts as a generator due to rotational inertia when the current applied to the driving unit is turned off. When the current applied to the motor is turned off, the direction of the current flowing in the coil of the motor is opposite to the direction of the current before the power is turned off, so a force (Fleming's right-hand rule) acts in the direction that hinders the rotation of the motor and the motor is braked. Unlike the reverse phase braking, the generator braking does not brake the motor suddenly, but smoothly changes the rotational direction of the drum.

Therefore, visually, the swing motion becomes a form in which the clothes flow in the form of a figure of eight lying sideways over the third and fourth quadrants of the drum.

Figure 4 (e) is a diagram showing a scrub motion (scrub motion). The scrub motion is a motion in which the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 in both directions, and the clothes fall at a position of about 90 degrees or more in the rotational direction of the drum through reverse phase braking.

That is, when the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 counterclockwise at about 60 RPM or more, the clothes located at the lowest point of the drum 30 rise to a predetermined height in the counterclockwise direction. At this time, the driving unit temporarily stops the rotation of the drum by providing a reverse torque to the drum after the clothes pass through a position of about 90 degrees in a counterclockwise direction of the drum. Then, the clothes on the inner circumferential surface of the drum fall rapidly.

Thereafter, the drive unit 40 rotates the drum clockwise at about 60 RPM to lift the fallen clothes clockwise to a predetermined height. The drive unit 40 provides reverse torque to the drum 30 to temporarily stop the rotation of the drum when the clothes pass through the 90 degree position in the clockwise direction of the drum. Accordingly, the clothes on the inner circumferential surface of the drum fall to the lowest point of the drum at a position of 90 degrees or more in the clockwise direction of the drum.

Therefore, in the scrub motion, the clothes are washed by causing the clothes to fall rapidly from a predetermined height. On the other hand, it is preferable that the drive unit 40 is braked in reverse phase for braking of the drum.

Since the rotation direction of the drum is rapidly changed, the clothes do not deviate greatly from the inner circumferential surface of the drum, so that a very strong scrubbing effect can be obtained. The scrub motion is a form in which clothes that have passed through the third quadrant and moved to a portion of the second quadrant fall rapidly, pass through the fourth quadrant, move to a portion of the first quadrant, and then fall repeatedly. Therefore, visually, it can be said to be a form in which the raised clothing repeatedly descends along the inner circumferential surface of the drum.

Figure 4 (f) is a diagram showing the filtration motion (filtration motion). The filtration motion is a motion in which the driving unit 40 rotates the drum 30 and sprays wash water into the drum so that clothes do not fall from the inner circumferential surface of the drum by centrifugal force.

That is, the filtration motion sprays water into the drum while it rotates in close contact with the inner circumferential surface of the drum after the clothes are unfolded, so that the water escapes to the tub 20 through the clothes and through holes of the drum by centrifugal force. Therefore, since the filtration motion expands the surface area of the clothes in contact with the wash water and allows the wash water to penetrate the clothes, it is possible to obtain an effect of evenly supplying the wash water to the clothes.

The method of spraying water to the drum in the filtration motion may be implemented by using a circulation passage and a circulation pump to circulate and spray the wash water stored in the tub.

On the other hand, the filtration motion may be performed so that the clothes rotate only in close contact with the inner circumferential surface of the drum without spraying water.

In addition, the filtration motion may be implemented in a method of spraying clean water supplied from an external water supply source without circulating wash water stored in the tub. It is defined as a spray rinse motion to distinguish it from a case where wash water stored in the tub is circulated. Since the spray rinse motion uses clean water, it is a motion suitable for a process requiring rinsing.

Figure 4 (g) is a view showing the squeeze motion (squeeze motion). The squeeze motion is a motion in which the drive unit 40 rotates the drum 30 so that the clothes do not fall off the inner circumferential surface of the drum by centrifugal force, and then lowers the rotational speed of the drum 30 to separate the clothes from the inner circumferential surface of the drum. Repeatedly, water is sprayed into the drum while the drum rotates.

That is, the filtration motion continues to rotate at a speed at which the clothes do not fall off the inner circumferential surface of the drum, but the squeeze motion changes the rotational speed of the drum so that the clothes adhere to and separate from the inner circumferential surface of the drum 30 repeatedly.

The process of spraying water into the drum 30 during the filtration motion and the squeeze motion may be implemented by the circulation passage and the circulation pump.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6 , the drum driving motion and drum rpm control applied in the washing, rinsing, and spin-drying processes of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention will be described.

5 is a graph showing the change in drum RPM in the rinsing cycle.

FIG. 5(a) shows a rinse cycle of a conventional laundry treatment apparatus, and FIG. 5(b) shows a rinse cycle of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5(a), the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a wetness detection step (step a) of detecting the amount of laundry in the laundry when the washing cycle is completed and all the water is drained and the rinse cycle is started. A control unit of a conventional laundry treatment apparatus determines the amount of water injected into the drum based on the detected amount of wet cloth. The rolling motion or the tumbling motion may be repeatedly performed when detecting the wet wet amount.

Thereafter, the conventional laundry handling apparatus performs a first unbalance detection step (step b) for detecting whether the clothes are evenly distributed inside the drum. The first unbalance detection step is a step of detecting whether excessive vibration occurs inside the drum while intermittently performing a filtration motion by increasing the rotational speed of the drum from a reference RPM or performing a squeeze motion. The reference RPM may be set to a rotational speed at which clothes remain attached to the inner wall of the drum.

On the other hand, it is preferable that the rotational speed of the drum does not exceed the excessive RPM in the imbalance detection step. The transient rpm may be set to an rpm between the dewatering rpm and the reference rpm. For example, the excessive RPM may correspond to an rpm at which abnormal vibration occurs when the rpm of the drum is increased. In addition, it may be a region corresponding to the resonant frequency of the laundry treatment apparatus. Accordingly, even when the degree of unbalance is equal to or less than the reference value in the unbalance detecting step, it is possible to prevent misjudgment of the degree of balance due to occurrence of abnormal vibration by raising the drum above the excessive rpm.

When the control unit of the conventional laundry treatment apparatus determines that the degree of unbalance is equal to or less than the reference value, it performs a rinsing/drying step (step C) of increasing the rotational speed of the drum to a spin-drying RPM at which water from the clothes can be discharged due to centrifugal force.

In the rinsing cycle, the unbalance detection step and the rinsing/drying step are performed to discharge detergent and foreign substances remaining in the clothes to the outside of the drum, and excessive vibration in the rinsing/drying step can be prevented in advance through the unbalance detection step.

Meanwhile, in the unbalance detecting step, when the degree of unbalance exceeds the reference value, a tumbling motion may be performed or a cloth loosening step may be further performed such as supplying water to the tub.

When the rinsing and dewatering step is finished, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a rinsing water supply step (step d) of supplying water to the inside of the tub after stopping the rotation of the drum.

In the rinsing water supply step (d step), the drum may be rotated intermittently so that the water supplied to the clothes may permeate or permeate better, and for example, a rolling motion or a tumbling motion may be performed.

When the supply of water is completed, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a rinsing step (step e) of removing foreign substances or detergent contained in the clothes by rotating the drum. In the rinsing step, the drum may be rotated by agitating left and right or intermittently rotated in one direction to separate detergent and foreign substances remaining in the clothes. For example, a rolling motion, a tumbling motion, a scrub motion, and the like may be performed.

In the rinsing step (step e), the rinsing performance can be maximized by driving the circulation pump 82 to circulate the washing water.

When the rinsing step is completed, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a draining step (f step) to discharge detergent and foreign substances to the outside of the tub.

When the drainage is completed, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs a second unbalance detection step (step g) of removing some of the moisture from the clothes while detecting the imbalance inside the drum again. The second unbalance detection step may be performed in the same manner as the first unbalance detection step (step b).

When the degree of unbalance is less than the reference value, the control unit of the conventional laundry treatment apparatus performs the rinsing/drying step (c) again to discharge foreign substances, detergent, and moisture remaining in the laundry to the outside of the drum. The rinsing/drying step (c), which proceeds after the draining step (f), may have a longer duration or a longer speed for maintaining the spin-drying rpm than the rinsing/drying step (c) before the rinsing/water supplying step.

At this time, in the first rinsing/drying step (c) and the second rinsing/drying step (h), the drain pump is opened to remove the discharged wash water and foreign substances from the tub.

As a result, in the rinsing cycle, the imbalance detection step (steps B and G) or the rinsing and dewatering steps (steps C and H) rotate the drum above the reference RPM, so that the clothes remain attached to the drum, and in the wet detection step, rinsing water supply step, rinsing step, and draining step, the drum rotates below the reference RPM, so that the clothes are repeatedly attached and separated from the inner wall of the drum. Also, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus repeatedly stops and rotates the drum during the time T1 when the rinse cycle is started and completed, and always performs an unbalance detection step before entering the rinse/dry cycle step.

Therefore, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus has a problem in that the time required for the rinse cycle is delayed by the time required for performing the imbalance detection step, and as a result, the washing time is delayed. In addition, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus has a problem in that energy efficiency is reduced because power is consumed while performing the imbalance detection step.

Furthermore, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus has a problem in that rotation of the drum is stopped or rotation is reversed, causing excessive vibration inside the drum and excessive load on the driving unit 40 .

5(b) shows the rinsing cycle of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention based on the RPM of the drum.

The rinsing cycle of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention may be the same as performing the wetness detection step (step a), the unbalance detection step (step b), and the rinsing/drying step (step c) in the conventional laundry treatment apparatus after the washing cycle.

However, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, after increasing the rotational speed of the drum to the spin-drying RPM in the first rinsing/drying step (step c), the rotational speed of the drum is maintained above the reference rpm even after the rinsing/drying step is finished.

The laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention performs the rinsing water supply step (step d), the rinsing step (step e), and the draining step (step f) while maintaining the rotational speed of the drum at or above the reference rpm.

In other words, in the laundry handling apparatus of the present invention, when the unbalance detection step (step b) and the rinsing/drying step (step c) are performed, the state in which the clothes are attached to the inner wall of the drum in a state where the degree of unbalance is below the reference value is continuously maintained, The rinsing water step (step d), the rinsing step (step e), and the draining step (step f) may be performed.

Meanwhile, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, rotation of the drum does not stop even after the first rinsing/drying step (step c) is finished. Accordingly, the control unit P of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention may open the water supply valve when detecting that the RPM of the drum reaches the reference RPM or is reduced below the excessive RPM after the first rinsing/drying step.

In addition, the control unit P of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention detects the water level sensor 90 in the draining step (f) to detect that all of the water inside the tub 20 has been discharged or to detect that all of the water has been discharged and that the reference water level has been reached.

Accordingly, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention can supply and drain water at an appropriate time even if each step of the rinsing cycle is not divided by the rotational speed of the drum.

In addition, the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may immediately perform the second rinse/drying step (step h) of raising the rpm of the drum to the spin rpm immediately after the draining step (step f) is finished. This is because the state in which the clothes are evenly attached to the drum is maintained from the rinsing and dewatering step (step c) performed before the rinsing water supply step, so there is no need to detect the degree of unbalance inside the drum again.

Therefore, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the second imbalance detection step (step G) can be omitted in the rinsing step, and the time required for the rinsing cycle can be shortened accordingly. Specifically, if the time required for the rinse cycle of the conventional laundry treatment apparatus is t1, the time required for the rinse cycle of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention is t2, which can save time by t3.

In addition, when the rinse water supply step (step d), the rinse step (step e), and the drain step (step f) are performed, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention not only simplifies the algorithm by operating only the water supply valve or the drain pump while maintaining the drum at or above the reference rpm, but also can significantly reduce the load applied to the drive unit.

In addition, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, power consumption of the driving unit can be greatly reduced by omitting re-driving the driving unit or changing the direction in which the driving unit rotates the drum.

Furthermore, since the clothes are fixed inside the drum, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention reduces vibration and noise, and prevents errors from occurring in the spin-drying step or spin-drying cycle.

Meanwhile, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the wetness detection step (a) or the unbalance detection step (b) may be defined as an intermittent rotation step because the drum rotation stops or the rotation direction of the drum changes.

In addition, since rotation of the drum does not stop from the first rinsing/drying step to the second rinsing/drying step in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, it can be defined as a continuous rotation step.

Meanwhile, in most washing courses and options of the clothes handling apparatus, it is common to perform the rinsing cycle multiple times to ensure complete removal of foreign substances and detergents.

Therefore, the effect can be further maximized when the rinsing cycle is repeated a plurality of times.

6 shows a graph based on drum rpm when rinsing cycles are performed multiple times.

FIG. 6(a) shows a case in which rinsing cycles are performed multiple times in a conventional laundry treatment apparatus, and FIG.

Referring to FIG. 6(a) , the conventional clothes treatment apparatus may perform a first rinse cycle in which rinsing is performed once and a second rinse cycle in which rinsing is performed once more.

In this case, the conventional laundry treatment apparatus may perform a first rinsing cycle including the second rinsing/drying step (h) in the wet wet detection step (step a) and repeat the above step. In other words, since the rotation of the drum is stopped when the first rinse cycle is completed in the conventional clothes treatment apparatus, the wetness detection step (a) and the unbalance detection step (b) are performed to perform the first rinse dehydration step (c) and the rinse water supply step (d).

In other words, whenever the rinsing cycle is performed a plurality of times, it means that the wetness detection step (a) or the unbalance detection step (b) should be performed more repeatedly.

Referring to FIG. 6(b) , the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may perform a first rinse cycle in which rinsing is performed once, and then a second rinse cycle which is performed one more time.

The first rinse cycle of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention may be the same as that of FIG. In other words, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the wetness detection step and the unbalance detection step may be omitted during the second rinse cycle.

In the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, after the rinse cycle starts and passes the imbalance detecting step, the drum rotation speed is not reduced below the reference rpm until the rinse cycle is completely finished. Therefore, even if the first rinse cycle is finished, since the state in which the clothes are evenly adhered to the inner wall of the drum is maintained, it is possible to immediately start the second rinse cycle by detecting that the rpm reaches the vicinity of the reference rpm or falls below the excessive rpm.

As a result, more time t6 can be saved than when the rinsing cycle is performed once, and energy efficiency can be increased by that much.

In other words, as more rinse cycles are performed in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, washing time can be significantly saved and energy efficiency can be greatly increased.

Fig. 7 is a graph showing the overall stroke of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention based on the rpm of the drum.

The laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may perform a dry cloth detection step when a wash course is performed.

The raisin sensing step may be a step of detecting the weight of the clothes itself because the moisture is not brought into contact with the clothes.

Thereafter, the control unit p may perform a washing operation after setting the water supply amount based on the amount of dry fabric. The washing cycle may be performed by combining at least one of a rolling motion, a tumbling motion, a swing motion, a step motion, a filtering motion, and a scrub motion according to settings in the washing course and options. Thereafter, the control unit (p) may end the washing cycle by opening the drain pump to discharge wash water and detergent.

When the washing cycle is finished, the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may perform the wet wet detection step (a) to the second rinse/dehydration step (c) or repeat it while performing the rinse cycle.

At this time, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention can always maintain the rotation speed of the drum above the reference speed (rpm) from after the imbalance detection step (b) until the end of the rinse cycle. Accordingly, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention can rotate the drum in a filtration motion at all times during the rinsing cycle.

In other words, in the rinsing cycle, the drum may be continuously rotated in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum, and the drum may be continuously rotated in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum at least until the end of the rinsing cycle after the sensing step including the wetness detection step and the unbalance detection step.

In this case, in the rinsing cycle, water may be supplied to the tub or drained from the tub while the clothes are attached to the drum and rotated.

In addition, when the last rinsing/drying step in the rinsing cycle is completed, the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention may perform a spin-drying cycle. In the dehydration process, a main dehydration step of increasing the drum speed to a high rpm (highest rpm, maximum speed) higher than that of the rinsing dehydration step may be performed. Accordingly, it is possible to maximally remove moisture remaining in the clothes in the spin-drying operation.

At this time, the dehydration cycle may be performed by accelerating the drum in the rinsing/dry cycle, or may be performed when the rotational speed of the drum reaches the vicinity of the reference rpm or is decelerated below the excessive rpm in the rinsing/dry cycle. Thus, sensing the degree of unbalance to enter the dehydration process or performing the intermittent process itself can be omitted.

As a result, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the rotational speed of the drum can continuously rotate without decelerating below the reference rpm from the rinsing cycle to the end of the spin-drying cycle, and the variation range of the load of the driving unit is small, so the durability and energy efficiency of the driving unit can be maximized.

FIG. 8 is a control method of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention, which newly defines an existing washing operation or spin-drying operation in consideration of a rotation method of a drum.

In the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the unbalance detection step of the rinse cycle in the washing cycle may be newly defined as an intermittent rotation step because even if the drum rotates at a high speed, there is a point in time when the drum rotates intermittently or the drum stops rotating, and since the rotation of the drum does not stop or the direction of rotation does not change from the rinse cycle to the dehydration cycle, it can be newly defined as a drum continuous rotation step.

Specifically, in the washing cycle, the raisin detection step and the unbalance detection step may be defined as a first intermittent rotation step (s1). That is, it can be seen that in the washing cycle, after the first intermittent rotation step, the water supplying step (s2) of opening the water supply valve to supply water is performed. Thereafter, the step of washing the drum by performing a rolling or tumbling motion, etc., may be defined as a second intermittent rotation step (s3). Further, it can be seen that the draining step (S4) is performed in which the drain pump is opened to drain water and foreign substances at the end of the washing cycle.

In addition, after the draining step in the rinsing cycle, the wet sensing step and the ub sensing step of detecting the amount or unbalance of the clothes by intermittently rotating the drum after the draining step can be defined as a third intermittent rotation step (s5).

Further, in the rinsing cycle, a period from after the third intermittent rotation step to the end of the rinsing/drying cycle or spin-drying cycle may be defined as the continuous rotation step (s6).

Since the rinsing water supply step (d) and the draining step (f) performed in the continuous rotation step (s6) are performed while rotating the drum 30, they can be defined as the rotation water supply step (S6-1) and the rotation drainage step (s6-2).

As a result, the continuous rotation step (s6) of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of the present invention may be a step of continuously rotating the drum 30 to prevent the rotation of the drum 30 from being stopped or the rotation direction of the drum 30 being changed.

In other words, stopping the rotation of the drum or changing the rotational direction of the drum from the third intermittent rotation step (s5) to the end of the main spin-drying process can be prevented.

In addition, in the continuous rotation step (s6) of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, even if water is supplied to or drained from the tub, the drum can be continuously rotated, and water can be supplied and drained while the drum rotates.

Meanwhile, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, the rotation speed of the drum may not be reduced below the reference speed at least until the rotation and drainage steps f and s4 are completed in the rinsing/drying step (b).

Of course, as described above, in the continuous rotation step (s6), the drum 30 can be continuously rotated at the reference speed (rpm) or higher from the third intermittent rotation step until the end of the rinsing cycle or the end of the washing course.

In the continuous rotation step, the rinsing/drying step (c) may be re-performed immediately after the rotation/drainage step (s6-2) ends, and the rinsing/draining step (c) may be performed when the water level in the tub reaches a reference water level or less during the rotation/drainage steps (6-2, f).

Fig. 9 compares the performance of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention and the conventional laundry treatment apparatus.

9(a) shows the ratio of maximum current values in the first rinse and dehydration step and the second rinse and dehydration step in the rinse cycle. (2nd rinse/dry step maximum current/1st rinse/dry step maximum current)

Fig. 9(c) shows the difference in power consumption between the conventional laundry treatment apparatus and the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

In the conventional laundry handling apparatus, the deviation of the maximum current consumed in the second rinse/dry step is large based on the maximum current consumed in the first rinse/dry step, but the deviation of the maximum current consumed in the first rinse/dry step is small in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention.

This means that more instantaneous energy required to rotate the drum is required due to the clumping or twisting of the clothes in the drum while going through the rinsing step in the conventional clothes handling apparatus.

However, in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, since the clothes are not separated from the inside of the drum even through the continuous rotation step or the rinsing and spin-drying cycles, the energy required to rotate the drum is substantially uniform.

Since the value of the current is proportional to the square of the power consumption, as shown in FIG. 9(c), the deviation of the current consumption value of the conventional laundry treatment apparatus is greater.

Therefore, the above experimental data proves that the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present invention consumes almost uniform power even when repeating the washing course and option or the washing course and option a plurality of times, and the amount of power consumed is smaller than that of the prior art.

9(b) shows the ratio of the maximum vibration value in the first rinse/dry step to the maximum vibration value in the second rinse/dry step of the conventional clothes treatment apparatus and the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention. (Maximum vibration in rinsing/drying step 2/Maximum vibration in rinsing/drying step 1)

In the conventional laundry treatment apparatus, excessive vibration occurs whenever the drum rotates because clothes are twisted or clumped together in the rinsing step, but in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention, since clothes are always attached to the inner wall of the drum even during the rinsing step, vibration is almost uniform. Therefore, the above experimental data proves that the amount of vibration generated in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present invention is smaller. (This is because the amount of vibration is small because the first rinse and dewatering was performed after passing through the unbalance detection step.)

The present invention is not limited to the scope of its rights to the above-described embodiment that will be able to be practiced in various forms. Therefore, if the modified embodiment includes the elements of the claims of the present invention, it should be regarded as belonging to the scope of the present invention.

1 Clothes handling device
10: cabinet 12: inlet
13: door 14: detergent box
16: control panel 17: display (alarm)
18: input unit 19: gasket
20: tub 21: tub inlet
23: tub support 25: rotating shaft bearing
30: drum 31: drum inlet
33: through hole 40: driving unit
41: stator 43: rotor
45: rotation axis 47: motor control unit
51: front balancer 53: rear balancer
70: water supply part 72: drainage part
80: circulation unit 90: water level sensor

Claims (16)

A method for controlling a laundry treatment apparatus comprising: a tub accommodating water; a drum rotatably provided in the tub to accommodate clothes; a driving unit connected to the tub to rotate the drum; a water supply valve communicating with the tub to supply water to the tub; and a drain pump draining water from the tub,
a first intermittent rotation step of intermittently rotating the drum to detect the amount (cloth weight) or unbalance of the clothes;
a water supplying step of supplying water to the tub by opening the water supply valve according to the amount of laundry;
a second intermittent rotation step of separating foreign substances from clothes by intermittently rotating the drum;
a drain step of draining water from the tub by operating the drain pump;
a third intermittent rotation step of intermittently rotating the drum after the draining step to detect the amount or unbalance of the clothes;
A continuous rotation step of rotating the drum to remove water and foreign substances from the clothes;
The continuous rotation step is
A rinsing/drying step of removing water from the clothes by rotating them at a spin speed higher than a reference speed (rpm) after the third intermittent rotation step;
A rotational water supply step of supplying water to the tub;
a rinsing step of removing water and foreign substances from the clothes by rotating the drum at a speed equal to or higher than the reference speed;
A rotation draining step of draining water from the tub;
In the rinsing and dewatering step, while continuously rotating the drum to prevent the drum rotation from stopping or changing the rotational direction of the drum until the rotation and draining step is completed,
The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the rotational speed of the drum is set to prevent the laundry from being decelerated below a reference speed at which the laundry is prevented from being separated from the inner wall of the drum.
According to claim 1,
The continuous rotation step is
A control method of a laundry treatment apparatus, characterized in that continuously rotating the drum even when water is supplied to or drained from the tub.
delete delete delete According to claim 1,
The rotation series step is
It is performed when the rotation speed of the drum reaches the reference speed after the third intermittent rotation step or is reduced to a transient speed (rpm) that is higher than the reference speed and lower than the spin-drying speed.
According to claim 1,
The rotation series step is
The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus, characterized in that it is performed when the rinsing/drying step starts and a reference time elapses.
According to claim 1,
The continuous rotation step is
The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the rinsing/drying step can be re-performed immediately after the rotation/draining step ends.
According to claim 1,
The rinsing/drying step is performed when the water level in the tub reaches a reference water level or less during the rotation/draining step.
According to claim 1,
The continuous rotation step is
Further comprising a main spin-drying step of removing water from the clothes by rotating the drum at a maximum speed higher than the spin-drying speed after the rinsing/drying step,
The continuous rotation step is
The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus, characterized in that stopping the rotation of the drum or preventing the rotation direction of the drum from changing from the third intermittent rotation step to the end of the main spin-drying step.
According to claim 1,
Further comprising a circulation pump for circulating the water discharged from the tub back to the tub,
The control method of the laundry treatment apparatus, characterized in that the circulation pump is operated at least once in the rinsing step.
A laundry handling apparatus comprising: a tub accommodating water; a drum rotatably provided in the tub to accommodate clothes; a driving unit coupled to the tub and rotating the drum; a water supply valve communicated with the tub to supply water to the tub; a drain pump configured to drain water from the tub; and a detergent box communicated between the water supply valve and the tub to supply detergent to the tub;
a washing cycle supplying the water and detergent to the tub to separate foreign substances from the clothes;
a rinsing cycle of supplying the water to the tub to remove detergent or foreign substances from the clothes;
A spin-drying cycle of removing water from the clothes by rotating the drum at a high speed;
The washing operation further includes a draining step of draining the water and foreign substances,
The rinsing process is
Further comprising a sensing step of detecting an amount of wetness of the drum or an unbalance of the clothes after the draining step,
and continuously rotating the drum in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum after the sensing step, at least until the end of the rinsing cycle.
delete According to claim 12,
The rinsing process is
The laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein water is supplied to the tub or water from the tub is drained while the clothes are attached to the drum and rotated.
According to claim 12,
and continuously rotating the drum in one direction to prevent the clothes from being separated from the drum from the rinsing cycle to the end of the spin-drying cycle.
delete