KR20090070840A - Steam cleaner and method for control of the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A steam cleaner and a control method thereof are provided to improve management efficiency by saving power consumption required in the steam injection by performing ventilation of hot air and steam injection through on-off duty cycle in which low frequency pulse and high frequency pulse are generated. A steam cleaner comprises a power supply unit(10), a heater unit(70), a steam injection unit(60), a pulse generating unit(30) and a controller(40). The power supply unit supplies current to an electric circuit. The heater unit has fever through the current supplied in the power supply unit. The steam injection unit generates the steam and sprays the steam in case the heater unit heats the water which is supplied. The pulse generating unit produces on-off duty cycle with being electrically connected to the electric circuit. In the on-off duty cycle, high frequency pulse and low frequency pulse are generated in one cycle. In the high frequency pulse, the steam injection unit maintains on-state. In the low frequency pulse, the steam injection unit maintains off-state.

Description

STEAM CLEANER AND METHOD FOR CONTROL OF THE SAME}

The present invention relates to a steam cleaner and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to reduce the power consumption through the on-off duty cycle consisting of a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse, and to enable rapid drying of the floor and a control thereof. It is about a method.

In general, the steam cleaner heats water to generate hot steam, and supplies the hot steam to a mop attached to the lower surface of the main body to remove dust, etc., and inhabits corners, carpets, sofas, and the like. It is a home appliance that can remove harmful bacteria.

A conventional steam cleaner is provided with a steam generator for generating steam, and the steam generator includes a heater that generates heat (Joule's Heat) by electric resistance, and the heater can store a predetermined amount of water. The water in the seal (which also serves as the 'bucket') is heated to a high temperature to generate steam.

Such a steam cleaner sprays a high temperature steam on a contaminated cleaning target part so that the property of contaminants such as steaming or oil can be easily removed from the cleaning target part through melting or activating. Accordingly, the cleaning effect can be increased and the labor of the worker can be significantly reduced.

In addition, as hot steam is directly supplied to the mop attached to the steam cleaner, it is continuously sterilized even during cleaning, which is contaminated by contaminants, thereby providing a desirable effect in hygienic aspects by blocking the growth of bacteria and the like. Can be.

However, the general steam cleaner according to the prior art had the following problems. First, since a certain amount of steam is continuously sprayed on the floor there is a problem inconvenient to use to frequently replenish the water contained in the steam cleaner.

Second, as the steam is continuously injected as described above, there is a problem that the power consumption consumed to drive the device is increased, which acts as a factor that hinders the operation efficiency.

Third, when the steam is sprayed on the floor for a long time, the floor is in a very humid state, and also to dry it there was a problem that a certain time of drying time should be secured.

In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a steam cleaner and a method of controlling the same, which can reduce power consumption through on-off duty cycles consisting of high frequency pulses and low frequency pulses, and enable rapid drying of floors. do.

The present invention for achieving the above object is a steam cleaner for heating the water to be supplied to generate steam, cleaning the spray by generating the generated steam to the outside, a power supply for supplying a current to the electric circuit; A heater unit generating heat through a current supplied from the power supply unit; A steam injection unit generating and injecting steam when the water supplied to the heater unit is heated; A pulse generator electrically connected to the electric circuit to generate an on-off duty cycle; And a controller for selectively operating the steam injector according to an on-off duty cycle generated by the pulse generator.

In the above configuration, in the on-off duty cycle, a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse are generated in one cycle, the steam injector is kept on in the high frequency pulse, and the steam injector is in the low frequency pulse. It is preferred to be configured to maintain an off state.

The low frequency pulse may be configured to inject warm air from the steam injection unit.

The pulse generating unit may be a motion sensor, and when the motion sensor detects the forward motion, outputs a high frequency pulse to the controller, and detects the backward motion, and outputs a low frequency pulse.

In addition, the present invention is a control method of the steam cleaner is configured to heat the water by the heater unit by the current supplied to the outside through the steam injection unit, the on-off duty consisting of the high frequency pulse and low frequency pulse Provided is a control method of a steam cleaner that switches to an on-off duty cycle and selectively operates the steam injector according to the on-off duty cycle.

As described above, the present invention enables the steam injection and the blowing of the warm air by the on-off duty cycle in which low frequency pulses and high frequency pulses are generated in one cycle, thereby saving the power consumption required for steam injection, thereby improving operational efficiency. It is effective to let.

In addition, the warm air is blown every 1/2 cycle to enable rapid floor drying. Therefore, there is an effect of preventing the floor from becoming very humid by prolonged steam injection.

In addition, it is possible to reduce the amount of water required during steam injection, there is an effect that can solve the cumbersome problems in use caused by the conventional frequent filling of water.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a steam cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the present invention includes a power supply unit 10, a pulse generator 30, a controller 40, a water supply unit 50, a steam injection unit 60, and a heater unit 70.

In the above configuration, the power supply unit 10 supplies a direct current or alternating current power (generally alternating current power) to the steam cleaner through the electric circuit 20.

The pulse generator 30 converts the current supplied to the electric circuit 20 into a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse, and configures it as one on-off duty cycle and sends it to the controller 40.

The steam injection unit 60 converts the water heated in the heater unit 70 into steam and sprays the water to the outside. At this time, the steam injection unit 60 may be a configuration in which a blower (not shown) for blowing air is provided. In addition, the steam injection unit 60 is connected to the water supply unit 50 for supplying water to the heater unit 70.

The controller 40 controls the steam injector 60 according to the type of pulse provided to the pulse generator 30. In addition, the controller 40 is electrically connected to the heater 70, the water supply 50, and a relay (not shown).

Referring to the control method of the steam cleaner of the present invention having the configuration as described above are as follows. 2 is a state diagram showing an on-off duty cycle of the steam cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, when power is supplied from the outside through the power supply unit 10, power is supplied to each device in a state in which the voltage is lowered in the electric circuit 20. At this time, the electric pulse generator 30 is connected to the electric circuit 20 to convert the current supplied into a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse and send it to the controller 40. In this case, the high frequency pulse and the low frequency pulse are generated within one on-off duty cycle. In addition, the on-off duty cycle is composed of a plurality (n cycles) to be continuous.

Here, the pulse generator 30 may employ a motion sensor. Accordingly, when the motion sensor detects the forward motion, the high frequency pulse is output to the controller 40, and when the backward motion is detected, the low frequency pulse is output. That is, by using the steam cleaner is equipped with a motion sensor in the form of a roller in the steam injection port which is in close contact with the floor to detect that the roller is moving forward or backward along the bottom surface. Subsequently, the detected signal may be converted into a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse and transmitted to the control unit 40.

On the other hand, the control unit 40 receives the high frequency pulse and the low frequency pulse as described above to maintain the steam injection unit 60 in the (on) state in the high frequency pulse. That is, when a high frequency pulse is received through a relay (switching means) connected to the control unit 40, the relay is turned on to allow steam to be injected by the steam injection unit 60.

On the other hand, when the low frequency pulse is received by the control unit 40, the control unit 40 turns off the water supply unit 50 to block the water supply to the steam injection unit 60. Then, the blower of the heater unit 70 and the steam injector 60 is operated so that the warm air is blown through the steam injector 60.

By this operation, the steam cleaner of the present invention is steam injection only in 1/2 cycle (high frequency pulse generation), and the warm air is blown in the remaining cycles.

Accordingly, the power consumption required for steam injection can be effectively reduced. In addition, when a wet state is achieved on the floor due to steam injection, the hot air is immediately blown to enable rapid drying. In addition, it is possible to significantly reduce the amount of water consumed, thereby reducing the frequent water replenishment work which is a conventional problem.

In addition, the conventional steam cleaner generally takes 15 seconds after the initial operation to heat the water supplied by the heater unit 70. Therefore, the steam cleaner is sprayed through the steam injection unit 60 after 15 seconds, the cleaning is performed.

As a result, the user has a cumbersome point of use that has to wait for the first 15 seconds to generate steam. On the other hand, the present invention is possible by spraying steam and blowing hot air in one cycle, so that the microfiber of the mop formed in the steam outlet of the steam cleaner is buried with water and blows the warm air, the steam can be generated in the microfiber of the mop even before the first 15 seconds At the same time, the steam cleaning is possible.

On the other hand, the present invention by employing the motion detection sensor as the pulse generator 30, it can be configured so that the steam is injected only when the mop part advances during operation of the steam cleaner and only the warm air is blown during the reverse operation. Therefore, when the user pushes the mop force, steam can be sprayed to easily clean foreign substances such as stains, and when the mop part is pulled, the floor can be dried quickly, thereby improving the cleaning efficiency of the steam cleaner.

Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and a person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains has the present invention described in the following claims. Various changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the technical idea.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a steam cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a state diagram showing an on-off duty cycle of the steam cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of Symbols in Drawings>

10: power supply 20: electric circuit

30: pulse generator 40: controller

50: water supply unit 60: steam injection unit

70: heater unit

Claims (5)

As a steam cleaner that heats the supplied water to generate steam, and sprays the generated steam to the outside to perform cleaning. A power supply unit for supplying current to the electric circuit; A heater unit generating heat through a current supplied from the power supply unit; A steam injection unit generating and injecting steam when the water supplied to the heater unit is heated; A pulse generator electrically connected to the electric circuit to generate an on-off duty cycle; And And a controller for selectively operating the steam injector according to an on-off duty cycle generated by the pulse generator. The method according to claim 1, The on-off duty cycle is, High frequency pulses and low frequency pulses are generated in one cycle, In the high frequency pulse, the steam injection unit is kept on (on), And the steam injector maintains an off state in the low frequency pulse. The method according to claim 2, The low-frequency pulse steam cleaner, characterized in that configured to inject the warm air from the steam injection unit. The method according to claim 2, The pulse generator is a motion sensor, And the motion detection sensor outputs the high frequency pulse to the controller when the forward motion is detected, and outputs the low frequency pulse when the backward motion is detected. As a control method of a steam cleaner, the heater unit heats water by the current supplied and sprays water to the outside through the steam injection unit. Converts the supplied current into an on-off duty cycle consisting of a high frequency pulse and a low frequency pulse, And controlling the steam injection unit selectively according to the on-off duty cycle.

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