WO2001029304A2 - Systemes et procedes permettant d'equilibrer un objet en rotation autour d'un axe - Google Patents

Systemes et procedes permettant d'equilibrer un objet en rotation autour d'un axe Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2001029304A2
WO2001029304A2 PCT/EP2000/010429 EP0010429W WO0129304A2 WO 2001029304 A2 WO2001029304 A2 WO 2001029304A2 EP 0010429 W EP0010429 W EP 0010429W WO 0129304 A2 WO0129304 A2 WO 0129304A2
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
balancing
liquid
chambers
chamber
cylindrical axis
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/EP2000/010429
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English (en)
Other versions
WO2001029304A9 (fr
WO2001029304A3 (fr
Inventor
Sigvard Hoornaert
Original Assignee
Primus N.V.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Primus N.V. filed Critical Primus N.V.
Priority to AT00972848T priority Critical patent/ATE287000T1/de
Priority to DE60017436T priority patent/DE60017436D1/de
Priority to AU11437/01A priority patent/AU1143701A/en
Priority to EP00972848A priority patent/EP1222332B1/fr
Publication of WO2001029304A2 publication Critical patent/WO2001029304A2/fr
Publication of WO2001029304A3 publication Critical patent/WO2001029304A3/fr
Publication of WO2001029304A9 publication Critical patent/WO2001029304A9/fr

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Classifications

    • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
    • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
    • D06F37/00—Details specific to washing machines covered by groups D06F21/00 - D06F25/00
    • D06F37/20—Mountings, e.g. resilient mountings, for the rotary receptacle, motor, tub or casing; Preventing or damping vibrations
    • D06F37/22—Mountings, e.g. resilient mountings, for the rotary receptacle, motor, tub or casing; Preventing or damping vibrations in machines with a receptacle rotating or oscillating about a horizontal axis
    • D06F37/225—Damping vibrations by displacing, supplying or ejecting a material, e.g. liquid, into or from counterbalancing pockets
    • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
    • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
    • D06F33/00—Control of operations performed in washing machines or washer-dryers 
    • D06F33/30—Control of washing machines characterised by the purpose or target of the control 
    • D06F33/48—Preventing or reducing imbalance or noise

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a rotating object and a method of balancing the object, which turns around an axis and which is provided with balancing chambers which can be selectively filled with a balancing liquid supplied by an appropriate number of liquid feed devices, e.g. a liquid flow controlled by solenoid valves.
  • the liquid feed devices are operated when the out-of-balance operation of the rotating object exceeds a certain maximum limit and the balancing is continued until the movement is again under this pre-set limit.
  • the present invention may relate to a machine containing a drum for extracting liquid out of liquid absorbent goods like a washing or drying machine whose drum rotates about a horizontal or vertical axis and more particularly to the prevention or reduction of vibration due to imbalanced forces caused by an unequal dividing of the absorbent goods about the inner periphery of the drum during the intermediate or final spin stage.
  • US 4,991,247 describes a method of balancing a washing machine whose drum rotates about a horizontal axis. Cavities are provided evenly distributed along the periphery of the drum 5 and these having openings via which liquid can be selectively introduced into a cavity.
  • a sensor is provided for sensing vibrations caused by imbalanced forces resulting from unequally divided linen in the drum. The output signal of the sensor is a measure of the current out-of-balance operation of the drum.
  • the drum is brought to a first rotational speed and the sensor signal is read.
  • a pre- determined amount of liquid is introduced into a randomly selected cavity along the periphery of the drum.
  • the sensor signal is again read and the value is compared with the preceding sensed value.
  • predetermined amount of water is introduced into the selected cavity while if the value is equal to or greater than the preceding one the predetermined amount is introduced into the immediate following cavity along the periphery.
  • This sequence is repeated until the sensor signal is lower than a predetermined, permissible value at which the container is brought to rotate at a second rotational speed, higher than the first one.
  • the sequence described is repeated for different rotational speeds until the desired rotational speed has been reached and the sensor signal is lower than the predetermined value.
  • US 5,280,660 describes a method of balancing a washing machine whose drum rotates about a horizontal axis and is provided with cavities evenly distributed along the periphery thereof and having openings via which liquid can be selectively introduced into a cavity.
  • the magnitude of the out-of-balance is determined by means of an accelerometer mounted on the housing between drum and housing.
  • the location of the out-of-balance is determined by measuring the time that has lapsed between the passage of a target mounted on the rotatable drum and the moment when the accelerometer generates a signal above a certain threshold.
  • the passage of the target is sensed by means of an inductive sensor. By comparing this lapsed time, knowing the speed of the drum, with values stored in a memory element the injector to be activated is determined.
  • the injector stays activated as long as the magnitude of the imbalance exceeds the threshold value.
  • a single stage cavity injection process is implemented. If time t indicates the imbalance is located directly across from a cavity, that cavity is injected with water until the magnitude of the imbalance falls below an acceptable level. If time t indicates the imbalance is not located directly across from a cavity, then two predetermined cavities are injected simultaneously, at the same rate, to effectively move the location of the imbalance directly to be across from another cavity, at which time that new cavity is injected to counterbalance the imbalance.
  • EP 0 856 604 describes a method for balancing the drum of a washing machine equipped with three or more hollow water chambers distributed along the internal periphery of the drum .
  • the imbalance is compensated while the drum accelerates from a low initial speed to a high final maximum spinning speed.
  • Water is injected into a selected water chamber which is situated diametrically opposite the imbalance position.
  • the addition of compensating water is continuous, by means of a predetermined flow, during continuous and gradual acceleration, while vibrations are measured continuously, and only the rate of acceleration is dependent upon the result of the vibration measurement..
  • smooth rotation is achieved without exceeding an admissible washing machine vibration value by means of drum acceleration at a gradual rate until reaching a maximum speed. It is alleged that the imbalance of the clothes is compensated for in a shorter total process time.
  • US 2,791,917 describes a two-drum washing machine with a balancing system.
  • Each of a plurality of balancing chambers has an inlet for balancing liquid and also an outlet for discharge of the liquid from the chamber during operation. It is admitted that there is no known system for guaranteeing that the liquid is injected into the correct chamber. This results in augmentation of imbalance instead of reducing it.
  • the ability to discharge liquid from each chamber allows corrections to be made but this reduces the speed at which balance can be reached.
  • the balancing chambers or cavities come into contact with soapy water from the drum which can reach a temperature of 90° C. This can cause the openings of the balancing chambers or the injectors of the injection system to be blocked by chalk residue or other contamination. Regularly cleaning of those elements is required which leads to high maintenance costs and can also lead to higher water consumption because of residue liquids in the balancing chambers caused by above mentioned items.
  • FR-A-986.259 describes a method of balancing a washing machine.
  • this machine the arrangement of chambers and feed and discharge pipes is made such that there is a reduced chance that dirty liquid from the drum of the washing machine enters the balancing chambers.
  • a guarantee of elimination of entry is not provided.
  • a sealed liquid balancing system This may include a simple sealed balancing ring which contains liquid. Due to out-of- balance motion of an unbalanced drum, the free liquid is thrown in a direction which compensates for the movement. Such a simple system can still have serious out-of- balance vibration. More sophisticated designs as disclosed in US 5,913,951 include a motor and pump mounted on the rotating drum to pump liquid between balancing cavities arranged around the periphery of the drum. This increases the complexity and cost of the design and places larger loads on the drive shaft.
  • the present invention may provide a method of operating a machine having a rotating container as well as at least one balancing chamber which is fillable with a liquid for correcting out-of-balance rotational operation of the container and an operation cycle of the rotating container which uses the liquid and then discards the liquid; comprising the steps of: balancing the rotating container by introducing the liquid into the at least one chamber during a first operation cycle; using the liquid from the balancing chamber in a subsequent operation cycle; and discarding the liquid at the end of the subsequent operation cycle.
  • the machine may be a washing machine.
  • the present invention may provide a machine having a rotating container as well as at least one balancing chamber which is fillable with a liquid for correcting out- of-balance rotational operation of the container and an operation cycle of the rotating container which uses the liquid and then discards the liquid; wherein the machine is adapted to balance the rotating container by introduction of the liquid into the at least one chamber during a first operation cycle, using the liquid from the balancing chamber in a subsequent operation cycle and discarding the liquid at the end of the subsequent operation cycle.
  • the machine may be a washing machine.
  • the present invention may provide a method of balancing the rotation of an object, wherein the object is cylindrical and rotates about its cylindrical axis and at least two balancing chambers are provided fillable with a liquid for correcting out-of- balance rotational operation of the object, a first balancing chamber lying substantially in a first plane perpendicular to the cylindrical axis and a second balancing chamber lying in a second plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis, comprising the steps of: sensing the out-of-balance rotational operation of the object in the two planes pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis; and controlling the introduction of liquid into the first balancing chamber and into the second chamber based on the results of the sensing in the first plane and in the second plane, the controlling step including correcting for phase changes of the out-of-balance operation of the object in accordance with the rotational speed of the object.
  • the present invention may provide an apparatus for balancing the rotation of an object, wherein the object is cylindrical and rotates about its cylindrical axis and at least two balancing chambers are provided fillable with a liquid for correcting out-of- balance rotational operation of the object, a first balancing chamber lying substantially in a first plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis and a second balancing chamber lying in a second plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis, comprising: a first sensor for sensing the out-of-balance rotational operation of the container in the first plane; a second sensor for sensing the out-of-balance rotational operation of the container in the second plane; and the control unit is adapted to control the introduction of liquid into the first balancing chamber based on the output of the first sensor and to control the introduction of liquid into the second chamber based on the output of the second sensor, whereby the control unit is adapted to compensate for phase changes of the out- of-balance operation of the object in accordance with the rotational speed of the object
  • the present invention may provide an apparatus for balancing the rotation of an object, wherein the object is cylindrical and rotates about its cylindrical axis and at least two balancing chambers are provided fillable with a liquid for correcting out-of- balance rotational operation of the object, a first balancing chamber lying substantially in a first plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis and a second balancing chamber lying in a second plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis, comprising: a first drainage channel running in a direction parallel to the cylindrical axis for draining the liquid from the first balancing chamber into a second drainage channel common to both the first and second balancing chambers.
  • the present invention may provide a method of balancing the rotation of an object, wherein the object is cylindrical and rotates about its cylindrical axis and at least two balancing chambers are provided fillable with a liquid for correcting out-of- balance rotational operation of the object, a first balancing chamber lying substantially in a first plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis and a second balancing chamber lying in a second plane pe ⁇ endicular to the cylindrical axis, comprising the steps of: draining the liquid from the first balancing chamber after the object has been balanced in a direction parallel to the cylindrical axis into a drainage channel common to both the first and second balancing chambers.
  • the present invention may provide a treatment apparatus including a rotating drum for receiving water absorbing materials to be treated and at least one balancing chamber on the drum for receiving water and to correct out-of-balance operation of the drum, further comprising a positive seal to prevent water from the drum from entering the at least one balancing chamber.
  • the present invention may provide an apparatus including a rotating object and a method for balancing the rotating object.
  • the object may be a hollow drum which turns around a horizontal or vertical axis and which is provided with balancing chambers as may be used, for instance in washing machines.
  • the drum may, in particular rotate about a horizontal axis as is typical for front loading or side loading washing machines.
  • the drum has at least three balancing chambers more towards the front (the side on which items may introduced into the drum) and/or more towards the rear side of the drum.
  • the chambers may be evenly distributed along the inner or outer periphery of the drum.
  • the apparatus in accordance with the present invention may be constructed in such a way that the balancing liquid can be re-used.
  • the drum is provided with a draining chamber whose outer radius is larger then the outer radius of the balancing cavities which makes system with non-return valves redundant.
  • the dehydration chamber may be located next to the balancing chambers at the rear of the apparatus.
  • the angular velocity of the container can be increased in pre-defined velocity steps until the desired maximum rotational speed is achieved. On each intermediate step there may be performed a balancing operation if the degree of out-of-balance motion justifies this.
  • This partially closed system meets the demand of water supply approvals organisations without needing to inject water from a separate tank because the injection system is separated from the waste water.
  • the means for detecting the imbalance can be a simple microswitch and there is no requirement for extra synchronisation of the imbalance signal with the rotational speed of the drum. As a consequence this system is cheaper to manufacture than known systems even on small capacity washing machines.
  • two out-of balance sensors e.g. one microswitch at the front of the drum and one at the back
  • two-plane balancing can be carried out.
  • the phase angle corrections dependent upon rotational frequency can be carried out so that balancing liquid is injected into the correct balancing chambers.
  • Fig. 1A is a schematic diagram of a washing machine.
  • Fig. IB is a schematic diagram of the force diagram acting upon a rotating drum of a washing machine.
  • Fig. 2 is a schematic representation of a washing machine in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention having two plane balancing and six balancing chambers in the front, six balancing chambers in the rear side each over an angle of 60°.
  • Fig 3 is a view D-D of Fig. 2 showing the front chambers and the housing mounted on spring or rubber block and the placement of a microswitch.
  • Fig. 4 is a view C-C of Fig. 2 showing the water injection system.
  • Fig. 5 is a view B-B of Fig. 2 showing a section view of the rear balancing chambers
  • Fig. 6 is a view A-A of Fig. 2 showing a section view of the dehydration unit.
  • Fig. 7 is a graph showing the imbalance signal (D), the activation signal from the out- of-balance sensor (A) and operating times for the water injection, firstly when the injectors are placed in a positive sense of the activation of the sensor (B) and in the negative sense (C).
  • Fig. 8 is a schematic representation of a washing machine in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention having one plane balancing and three chambers in the inner periphery of the drum.
  • Fig. 9 is a view C-C of Fig. 8 showing the water injection system.
  • Fig. 10 is a view B-B of Fig. 8 showing the water supply to the balancing chambers
  • Fig. 11 is a view A-A of Fig. 8 showing a section view of the dehydration unit.
  • Fig 12. is a schematic representation of a washing machine in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention having two plane balancing and six chambers in the inner periphery of the drum in line.
  • Fig 13 is a view A-A of Fig. 12 showing a section view of the draining chambers of a first dehydration unit.
  • Fig. 14 is a view B-B of Fig. 12 showing a section view showing the water supply to the chambers
  • Fig. 15 is a view C-C of Fig. 12 showing the water injection system.
  • Fig. 16 is a view D-D of Fig. 12 showing the draining chambers of a second dehydration unit.
  • front, back, top, bottom, upper, lower etc. relate to a front loading washing machine in its usual operational position, i.e. the washing is loaded through a door at the front into a drum which is rotatably mounted in a cantilever fashion at the back of the machine.
  • Machine 1 includes a housing 2 on suspension units, e.g. rubber blocks 3, and mounted in a frame 4 and a rotatable drum 5 within the housing which is cantilevered from a bearing 32.
  • the housing has a front door 38 for loading washing into the drum 5.
  • a motor 13 is provided for driving the drum, e.g. through a belt and pulley system.
  • a water supply 30, a drain valve 34 for waste water and a pump 36 for pumping out the waste water are also provided. It is well known that the damping support for a machine should ideally have a low elastic modulus, i.e. be very "soft", with viscous damping to reduce oscillations.
  • the system should be designed so that 1.414 times the natural resonant frequency of the system should lie well below the operating frequency of the system.
  • This approach has been used extensively for automobile suspensions and requires an expensive, bulky and sophisticated damper arrangement.
  • Such a suspension system is not very suitable for a washing machine which has to work at low frequencies during washing cycles and higher frequencies during drying cycles.
  • the present invention starts from the use of a simple suspension such as provided by rubber blocks, while actively reducing the out- of-balance forces and movements to a minimum or even to a negligible amount. In such a case the rubber blocks do not absorb significant motions or energies but rather are only provided to suppress noise.
  • At least one balancing chamber is provided which may be filled with water to provide the balancing.
  • the water used for balancing may be re-used oin the next cycle.
  • the chamber is segregated from the drum by means of a seal. A sela also prevents dirty water from the drum entering the balancing chamber.
  • the out-of-balance operation of the drum is preferably corrected by two-plane compensation using at least two balancing chambers one of which is placed closer to the front of the machine 1 than the other.
  • a washing machine 1 to be balanced comprises a housing 2 fixed on suspension units such as rubber blocks 3 or springs which themselves are connected to a frame 4 (frame 4 is not shown in Fig. 2 for clarity pu ⁇ oses).
  • a drum 5 for holding the washing rotates about a horizontal shaft 3a.
  • the drum 5 has a plurality of circumferentially and preferably contiguously distributed and preferably equally spaced balancing chambers 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d, 6e, 6f on the front vertical surface of drum 5 and a plurality of circumferentially and preferably contiguously distributed and preferably equally spaced chambers 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d, 7e, 7f on the rear vertical surface of the drum 5.
  • 6 balancing chambers 6, 7 are particularly preferred.
  • a casing 2a holding bearings for the shaft 3a is fixed to the rear of the housing 2.
  • Injection pipes 8a, 8b supply water from a water source, e.g.
  • Controller 17 receives as an input the output from at least one out-of-balance sensor 18.
  • the out-of balance sensor 18 may be a microswitch, a strain gauge an accelerometer or similar.
  • out-of balance sensors 18 there are two out-of balance sensors 18, a first sensor 18-1- which senses the out-of-balance operation of the front of the drum 5 and a second out-of-balance sensor 18-2 which senses the out-of-balance operation of the rear of the drum 5.
  • these may be activated by the movements of an upper frame 21 which is part of or attached to the housing 2 (see Fig. 3).
  • the outer surface of drum 5 may be used to activate the microswitches 18 but this is less preferred as the movement of drum 5 will cause wear of the microswitch contact surfaces.
  • a dehydration unit 9 which may comprise a plurality of circumferentially and contiguously arranged draining chambers.
  • the dehydration unit 9 is preferably divided into the same number of chambers as the number of balancing chambers, e.g. six chambers 9a, 9b, 9c, 9d, 9e, 9f connected with to the front chambers 6a, 6b ,6c ,6d ,6e, respectively through dehydration tubes 10a, 10b; 10c, lOd; lOe, lOf; lOg, lOh; lOi, lOj; 10k, 101.
  • each front chamber 9 is connected to a pair of dehydration tubes 10.
  • a mechanical seal 12 is preferably provided at the centre of the dehydration unit 9 to prevent soapy water from the drum 5 entering into any of the balancing chambers 7.
  • the balancing chambers 6, 7 are connected with the housing 2 through cylindrical spaces 35, 37 and pipes 14b, 14c which can be isolated from each other by means of a valve 15.
  • a water container 14 may be provided to catch su ⁇ lus balancing water which is recovered from the draining chamber 9 and/or the rear chambers 7.
  • 14a represents a connection to the open air which is an overflow when container 14 is full.
  • Item 16 is a seal which prevents water entering into the bearings.
  • An AC motor 19 may be controlled by a frequency converter 20 so that the drum 5 can be rotated with speeds between 10 ⁇ and 1000 rpm or higher.
  • the speed may be gradually increased according to any one of the following non-limiting speed series :
  • the controller 17 may be a microcontroller or a programmable microcontroller and may include some local intelligence, i.e. a microprocessor or programmable gate for controlling the operation of the water values as well as the motor 19.
  • the local intelligence e.g. microprocessor or programmable gate array, is preferably programmed to carry out any of the control algorithms of the present invention as explained below.
  • a drum balancing operation may be performed by injecting balancing liquid independently into any one or both sets of balancing chambers 6 and/or 7 if drum 5 is out-of-balance, e.g. because the washing inside the drum 5 is located all at one spot the drum has an out-of-balance motion to be corrected.
  • a microswitch 18 is activated when the movement of the flexible frame 21 which is mounted on the housing 2 exceeds a certain limit caused by the out-of- balance operation of the drum 5.
  • out-of-balance movements of forces on the housing 2 can be detected in different ways such as with a magnetic switch, an inductive sensor or strain-gauge or a piezo-electrical element or any other suitable proximity or force sensor.
  • physical movement of housing 2 or frame 21 is not necessary for balancing in accordance with the present invention.
  • strain gauges placed in appropriate positions, e.g. on the bearings within casing 2A.
  • a checking cycle or parameter cycle is performed in which a time Tl which elapses between when a signal of the microswitch 18 becomes high and low is measured (A) as well as a time T2 between when the signal of a microswitch 18 becomes low and then high again.
  • Tl + T2 is a measure of the period time or cycle time T of one rotation of the drum 5.
  • balancing cycles are performed, which are based on the moment at which a microswitch 18 switches from on position to off position. Ideally, water is injected into the balancing chambers 6, 7 either side of the middle point of time period Tl (see B and C) into those chambers 6,
  • balancing chambers 6, 7 which lie opposite the out-of-balance load in the drum 5. By doing this it can be guaranteed that the balancing chambers 6, 7 are filled which are opposite the out-of- balance load in drum 5. It is preferred in accordance with the present invention if water is injected into a sufficient number of contiguous balancing chambers 6, 7 which together make up a certain angle ⁇ of the circumference of drum 5. Preferably, this angle is about 120°, e.g. 120° ⁇ 30°, or more preferably 120° ⁇ 15°. This may be achieved by 6 equally spaced balancing chambers 6, 7 which each have an included angle of 60°. Water should be injected in such a way that 2 chambers are filled with balancing water thus making up 120° of the circumference of the drum 5.
  • the water injection must only be continued for a time equal to or less than T/3. Therefore, the water injection time T/3 must be located within the time Tl if this time Tl is greater than T/3 - see Fig. 7. In this case the water injection is started at a time T6 after the microswitch 18 activates. However, if time Tl is less than T/3 then water may be injected for the time Tl or the time T/3 whichever is preferred. As a small time Tl indicates a position close to balance it is preferred if the water injection is only over time Tl if Tl is less than T/3 as usually in this condition less water is necessary to achieve balancing. Depending upon the position of the microswitch the injection may be necessary in phase with the operation of the microswitch (B in Fig. 7) or in counter-phase (C in Fig. 7).
  • phase correction value is an experimentally determined value which takes into account the phase angle deviation between the movement of the drum 5 and the out-of-balance load in the drum 5.
  • phase correction changes as the operation becomes closer to or further away from the natural resonant frequency of the rotating system and it is within the scope of the present invention that the water injection control includes corrections which take into account the frequency of rotation of drum 5. This phase correction is of importance especially close to resonance as the phase correction angle p becomes a large value, e.g. 180° in the extreme case.
  • balancing liquid would be injected into the chamber which is diametrically opposite to the one which would improve balancing. Such an injection will make the out-of-balance operation worse resulting in a further attempt by the balancing system to correct. This further attempt also injects liquid into the wrong chamber resulting in ever increasing out-of-balance.
  • balancing liquid can not only be injected into a chamber but also extracted therefrom during rotation. This may be done by pumping liquid between chambers or by discarding the liquid.
  • these solutions are costly and difficult to implement. It is preferred in accordance with the present invention if there is no discarding of the liquid from the chambers or pumping of liquid between chambers during balancing cycles.
  • Another method is to design the suspension system for the drum so that the phase correction is roughly constant over the frequency range 100 to 1000 ⁇ m so that a fixed correction may be applied to obtain sufficient accuracy. This may, however, place severe limitations on the kind of suspension which can be used in practical designs of washing machines.
  • a correction angle p is applied dependent upon the rotational frequency of the drum so that during a balancing step, liquid is injected into the correct chamber and the balancing system does not increasingly spiral out of control.
  • the first step is to determine the phase correction angle p versus rotational speed characteristic for the washing machine. This may be done experimentally on each machine or, if the mechanical design is independent of manufacturing tolerances, on one machine for all.
  • the phase deviation can be determined by measuring the time shift between the signal from a fixed target on the drum and the sinusoidal signal from a proximity sensor. This characteristic is then stored in the form of an equation or as discrete values, e.g. in a look-up table (LUT). This data may be stored in non-volatile memory of the controller
  • the rotational speed is first calculated from the cycle time T by the controller 17, the inverse of which gives the rotational speed.
  • the correction angle p can be determined either from the stored function or from the LUT. Where values between stored values in the LUT are required these can be determined by conventional inte ⁇ olation routines.
  • the time point of injection is then defined by:
  • T5 is a correction constant relating to delays in the system, e.g. the time delay between applying the current to an electrically operated valve and the release of the liquid into a balancing chamber.
  • microswitches 18-1 at the front of the washing machine 1 and the other microswitch 18-2 at the rear is used to control the water injected into the front and rear balancing chambers 6, 7, respectively.
  • the control procedures for the front and rear chambers 6, 7 can be carried out so that complex gyratory motions of the drum 5 may be balanced automatically.
  • the advantage of balancing in two planes is that the centre of gravity point of the combined balancing liquid amounts in the front or rear chambers 6, 7 can be exactly aligned with the imbalance forces generated by imbalanced loads of washing in drum 5. This leads to reduced shear forces on the main shaft which carries drum 5.
  • Fig. IB shows the force diagram on a rotating drum where:
  • F f r ont the reaction force on the front suspension (measured)
  • F rear the reaction force on the rear suspension (measured)
  • F u periodic unbalanced force on the suspension (unknown)
  • L ft , distance between front suspension and centre of gravity of imbalance (unknown)
  • Lru distance between rear suspension and centre of gravity of imbalance (unknown)
  • L fixed distance between front and rear suspension.
  • the time that a microswitch is on which equals Tl, is determined by the excentricity of the motion of the drum. The greater the excentricity, the longer the microswitch will stay on. However, the excentricity is also a measure of the force generating that excentricity so an approximation may be made that F f r o ⁇ t is proportional to Tl front and that F rea r is proportional to Tl rear , where Tlf ro ⁇ t is the time that the front microswitch 18-1 is on and Tl rea r is the time the rear microswitch 18-2 is on (see Fig. 7 for an explanation of Tl).
  • T2 T2
  • T-T2 T2
  • T-T2 T2
  • T-T2 T2
  • Tl fron ,/Tl rear Tl fron ,/Tl rear
  • Tlf r0 nt/Tlrear the value of Tlf r0 nt/Tlrear increases then it means that the centre of balance of the drum and the clothes therein has moved towards the back of the drum and balancing liquid must be introduced into the rear chambers. If it decreases, liquid must be injected into the front chambers. By this means the drum may be kept equally balanced.throughout its the speed range.
  • the necessary calculations and valve control can be carried out by programming the controller 17 appropriately.
  • the effect of the balancing step will be to reduce movement of drum 5 and at some time both microswitches 18 are no longer activated in any rotation cycle, or, alternatively Tl f r on t and Tl rear become less than a certain value in relation to the speed of the drum 5. At this point the drum has reached a satisfactory level of balance the current balancing step is completed. The drum 5 may then be safely accelerated until the next pre-determined speed is reached at which there is performed a further balancing operation. If Tlfr on t or Tl rea r or both of them already exceeds a certain maximum value during the acceleration phase then the acceleration can be stopped early and a balancing operation can be performed at a speed between two predetermined values. Control of the balancing operation is done by controller 17 programmed to carry out the control actions described above.
  • the balancing operations are repeated until the final spinning speed is reached.
  • the washing machine 1 is held at maximum speed by controller 17 until enough water has been extracted from the washing load in accordance with the machine design specification.
  • the drain valve 34 of the washing machine 1 is closed and the water valve 15 opened. All water that is in the balancing chambers 6, 7 and is submitted to a centrifugal force of less then 1 G will be drained into the bottom of housing 2. This draining occurs as the drum 5 turns slowly and is without pumping, i.e. the drainage is gravimetric. This clean water is used in the next cycle for washing pu ⁇ oses. Thus, no clean water is lost in accordance with the present invention.
  • the balancing liquid in the front balancing chambers 6 is drained in the following way.
  • the water In the upper position of a front balancing chamber 6 the water is drained through the pipes 5 and 14 to the housing 2.
  • the tubes 10 act as an air inlet.
  • the balancing chamber 6 When the balancing chamber 6 is in the lower position the water is drained from the front balancing chambers 6 into the specially constructed drain chamber 15 through pipes 10.
  • the pipes 5 act as an air inlet.
  • the water is taken up to higher position through the shutters 33 in the draining chamber (see Fig. 6) so that the balancing liquid is drained to the central cylindrical space 39 and from there into the housing 2 through the pipe 14.
  • a water level sensor 31 is provided to detect when a certain pre-determined level of water is in the housing 2 and when this level is reached, the water valve 15 is closed and the rest of the balancing liquid is caught in the container 14. Balancing water from the rear chamber 7 drains down through pipe 14b 18 into housing 2. Any excess water drained after the water level indicator has been activated is drained into container 14. Water in container 14 is released later into the housing 2 at the moment when the washing machine 1 requires water for pre-, main- wash or rinsing operations by opening valve 15. Not only fresh water is saved but also energy is conserved. When the balancing water is in the balancing chambers 6, 7 is absorbs heat from the drum 5 remaining after the washing cycle. Thus, when this water is re-used in the next cycle less heat energy is required to heat up the water.
  • FIG. 8 to 12 Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 8 to 12 in which three longitudinal discrete balancing chambers 7a, 7b, 7c are provided which are drained by dehydration unit 9.
  • Reference numbers in the drawings which are the same as the numbers in Figs. 1 to 6 refer to the same items.
  • the chambers are located in a longitudinal direction on the outer rim of drum 5. All other aspects of collecting and re-using water are as described above. As only one set of chambers 7 is provided, only one out-of-balance sensor 18 is required.
  • Dehydration unit 9 may be provided by narrow channels 9a, 9b, 9c as shown in Fig. 11.
  • the number of discrete chambers 7 may be increased to 6 or 12 for instance.
  • FIG. 13 to 17 Reference numbers in the drawings which are the same as the numbers in Figs. 1 to 6 refer to the same items.
  • two sets of discrete balancing chambers 6, 7, one at the front (6) and one at the back (7), are provided on the rim of drum 5.
  • Each set of chambers 6, 7 has its own draining chamber 9, 11 respectively for draining balancing water from the front chambers 6 and rear chambers 7 respectively.
  • Each dehydration unit is similar to the dehydration unit of the first embodiment. All other aspects of water and energy conservation are maintained.
  • a balancing method of an object such as a container or hollow drum is described which turns around a horizontal or vertical axis and which is provided with balancing chambers.
  • These chambers may be combined in various ways, e.g. at least three chambers evenly distributed in the inner or outer periphery of the drum or with at least 6 chambers (preferably, is 12 chambers) in the front and/or rear side of the drum.
  • the chambers on the outer or inner periphery of the drum may be further divided into two a front and rear set.
  • Each of the distributed chambers is connected with a cylindrical shaped volume 35, 37 so that balancing liquid can be supplied continuously.
  • the water may be supplied from one cylindrical shaped volume having tubes likes spokes of a wheel leading to the chambers. In this case it is sufficient to have only one water valve for each balancing plane.
  • Filling of the axial chambers is done continuously by means of connecting each separate chamber to a respective cylindrical shaped volume 35., 37 or discontinuously by means of connecting each chamber in a direct or indirect way to the respective part of a cylindrical shaped volume 35, 37 divided in an equal number of chambers like the number of balancing chambers in the front respective the rear side of the drum.
  • a flexibly mounted rotating machine has been described whose out-of- balance movement is detected by means of a suitable sensor, such as a microswitch, a strain gauge, the plunger of the water valve, inductive -, optical sensor or any other means that can directly or indirectly can detect a movement.
  • microswitch is mounted so that the direction of its movement is pe ⁇ endicular to the movement that is caused by the imbalance
  • the machine may also be mounted on rubber blocks or springs with a high k factor so that there is no or negligible movement in vertical direction to be expected. Having it mounted on rubber blocks has the consequence that the spring constant k is high resulting in a resonant frequency of the system which is also high. Thus resonance at low frequencies can be avoided.
  • the balancing chambers is sealed from the housing by means of a mechanical seal.
  • An injection collector volume is provided with a small diameter which is connected through pipes with the balancing chambers.
  • a means is provided for quick draining of the balancing chambers.
  • Two or more tubes connect each front chamber for draining towards the back. One tube is situated on the maximum radius of the chamber. The other tube is situated on the smallest radius of the chamber. Those tubes are situated in the spare space formed between the outer periphery of the drum and the rib of the washing drum.
  • the tubes on the outer periphery are all connected with a cylindrical chamber at the rear side of the drum also divided in an equal number of chambers as there are at the front side of the drum.
  • the outer radius of this cylindrical chamber is bigger then the radius of the front balancing chambers and the width of it as small as possible. In this way a quick draining of the front chambers is achieved.
  • Acceleration may be provided by predetermined steps of increasing speed.
  • a balancing cycle may consist out of determining the respective microswitch operating times Tl Front and TlR ear during which the microswitch in the front respectively in the rear, is activated and time T2 Fr0 nt and T2 rear during which the microswitches, in the front, respectively in the rear, are not activated.
  • T4 Rear or T4 Fr0nt may be determined independently which is the delay time before activating the injection water valve after detecting the rising edge of the microswitch.
  • the water valve is generally activated for a period T/3.
  • a balancing system is provided for a washing machine which is sealed from the housing of the washing machine so that there are no problems to comply with water approval authority regulations and with which no problems are to be expected due to contamination in the balancing chambers.
  • the housing drain valve is closed before decelerating the drum.
  • the water valve 15 is opened during deceleration so that the balancing water drains to the housing.
  • Water valve 15 is closed if a water level sensor senses that the water has reached almost the outer diameter of the drum so that the rest of the balancing water is collected in a container 14. The moment that there is a request for water for washing or rinsing the valve 15 is opened until water is drained out of the container 14 towards the drum 5 and then closed again.
  • the bottom of the container 15 is higher then the highest water level to be expected in the housing 2 when receiving the maximum to be expected balancing liquid.
  • the volume of the container 14 is preferably equal to the maximum to be expected imbalance liquid minus the volume of water that can be contained in the housing before the water touches the drum.
  • the dehydration unit may divided in an equal number of chambers as there are balancing chambers in the respective balancing plane.
  • This draining chambers have a radius bigger then the one of the balancing chamber and are connected to each other with at least one pipe at the maximum radius of the balancing chamber. This assures a complete dehydration of the balancing chambers and makes it also possible by this to make a closed system without any mechanical or electrical dehydration valves.
  • DC operated water valves may be used which are opened with a positive voltage impulse to achieve short opening times and are closed by a normal negative voltage to have a small closing time.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Textile Engineering (AREA)
  • Control Of Washing Machine And Dryer (AREA)
  • Testing Of Balance (AREA)
  • Centrifugal Separators (AREA)
  • Rolls And Other Rotary Bodies (AREA)
  • Constituent Portions Of Griding Lathes, Driving, Sensing And Control (AREA)

Abstract

La présente invention concerne une machine qui comprend un conteneur rotatif (5), par exemple une machine à laver. Une ou plusieurs chambres (6a à f) peuvent être situées sur la périphérie dudit conteneur, afin d'équilibrer le conteneur rotatif. Ces chambres peuvent être remplies d'eau, afin de permettre la compensation de toutes les forces de déséquilibre. Au moins une partie de l'eau qui est utilisée pour l'équilibrage est éliminée des chambres d'équilibrage lorsque le conteneur n'est plus en rotation et est stockée (14), afin d'être utilisée dans le prochain cycle d'opération de la machine. Les chambres d'équilibrage peuvent être placées dans deux plans séparés ou dans un seul plan. Pour y parvenir, chaque plan des chambres d'équilibrage possède une alimentation en eau séparée (8). Les deux plans des chambres peuvent également présenter des systèmes d'extraction de l'eau séparés (9a à f). L'injection d'eau peut être déclenchée par le mouvement de déséquilibre ou par les forces de déséquilibre exercées par le conteneur rotatif.
PCT/EP2000/010429 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systemes et procedes permettant d'equilibrer un objet en rotation autour d'un axe WO2001029304A2 (fr)

Priority Applications (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AT00972848T ATE287000T1 (de) 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systeme und verfahren zum auswuchten eines sich um eine achse drehenden teils
DE60017436T DE60017436D1 (de) 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systeme und verfahren zum auswuchten eines sich um eine achse drehenden teils
AU11437/01A AU1143701A (en) 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systems and methods for balancing an object rotating about an axis
EP00972848A EP1222332B1 (fr) 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systemes et procedes permettant d'equilibrer un objet en rotation autour d'un axe

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB9924832.0 1999-10-21
GBGB9924832.0A GB9924832D0 (en) 1999-10-21 1999-10-21 Method of balancing an object which rotates about an axis
EP00104591.3 2000-03-15
EP00104591A EP1094143A1 (fr) 1999-10-21 2000-03-15 Disposif pour équilibrer des objets tournant autour d'un axe

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2001029304A2 true WO2001029304A2 (fr) 2001-04-26
WO2001029304A3 WO2001029304A3 (fr) 2001-09-13
WO2001029304A9 WO2001029304A9 (fr) 2002-09-12

Family

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PCT/EP2000/010429 WO2001029304A2 (fr) 1999-10-21 2000-10-20 Systemes et procedes permettant d'equilibrer un objet en rotation autour d'un axe

Country Status (5)

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EP (2) EP1094143A1 (fr)
AT (1) ATE287000T1 (fr)
AU (1) AU1143701A (fr)
GB (1) GB9924832D0 (fr)
WO (1) WO2001029304A2 (fr)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2008125498A1 (fr) * 2007-04-16 2008-10-23 Arcelik Anonim Sirketi Machine à laver séchante
EP3081685A1 (fr) * 2013-02-13 2016-10-19 LG Electronics Inc. Procédé de commande d'appareil de traitement du linge avec compensateurs

Families Citing this family (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2009083352A1 (fr) * 2007-12-28 2009-07-09 Arcelik Anonim Sirketi Machine à laver ayant des réservoirs intégrés dans les nervures à des fins d'équilibrage et de projection de jets d'eau de lavage
JP2010207316A (ja) * 2009-03-09 2010-09-24 Panasonic Corp 洗濯機
DE102009044709B4 (de) * 2009-12-01 2014-10-23 Miele & Cie. Kg Waschmaschine mit einem Laugenbehälter und einer Auswuchteinrichtung
CN102560962A (zh) * 2010-12-24 2012-07-11 博西华电器（江苏）有限公司 洗衣机的滚筒组件以及设有该滚筒组件的洗衣机
CN113614304A (zh) * 2019-03-27 2021-11-05 伟视达电子工贸有限公司 用于洗衣机的平衡系统

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FR986259A (fr) * 1948-05-26 1951-07-30 Perfectionnements aux machines à laver et à nettoyer
US2791917A (en) * 1953-09-30 1957-05-14 Frank J Kahn Automatic balancing of rotatable hollow cylinders
WO1989012132A1 (fr) * 1988-05-30 1989-12-14 Aktiebolaget Electrolux Procede d'equilibrage d'une enceinte tournant autour d'un axe essentiellement horizontal
US5280660A (en) * 1992-10-05 1994-01-25 Pellerin Milnor Corporation Centrifugal extracting machine having balancing system
EP0856604A2 (fr) * 1997-01-31 1998-08-05 FAGOR, S.Coop Méthode pour l'equilibrage d'une machine a laver

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US5913951A (en) * 1997-12-17 1999-06-22 Maytag Corporation Radially oriented motor for a fluid balance ring

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR986259A (fr) * 1948-05-26 1951-07-30 Perfectionnements aux machines à laver et à nettoyer
US2791917A (en) * 1953-09-30 1957-05-14 Frank J Kahn Automatic balancing of rotatable hollow cylinders
WO1989012132A1 (fr) * 1988-05-30 1989-12-14 Aktiebolaget Electrolux Procede d'equilibrage d'une enceinte tournant autour d'un axe essentiellement horizontal
US5280660A (en) * 1992-10-05 1994-01-25 Pellerin Milnor Corporation Centrifugal extracting machine having balancing system
EP0856604A2 (fr) * 1997-01-31 1998-08-05 FAGOR, S.Coop Méthode pour l'equilibrage d'une machine a laver

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Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2008125498A1 (fr) * 2007-04-16 2008-10-23 Arcelik Anonim Sirketi Machine à laver séchante
CN101680150B (zh) * 2007-04-17 2011-06-22 阿塞里克股份有限公司 洗涤机/干燥机
KR101158429B1 (ko) * 2007-04-17 2012-06-22 아세릭 에이. 에스 세탁기
US9228285B2 (en) 2007-04-17 2016-01-05 Arcelik Anonim Sirketi Washer/dryer
EP3081685A1 (fr) * 2013-02-13 2016-10-19 LG Electronics Inc. Procédé de commande d'appareil de traitement du linge avec compensateurs
EP3085827A1 (fr) * 2013-02-13 2016-10-26 LG Electronics Inc. Unité d'égalisation et appareil de traitement du linge
US10023987B2 (en) 2013-02-13 2018-07-17 Lg Electronics Inc. Laundry treatment apparatus

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2001029304A9 (fr) 2002-09-12
GB9924832D0 (en) 1999-12-22
AU1143701A (en) 2001-04-30
EP1222332B1 (fr) 2005-01-12
ATE287000T1 (de) 2005-01-15
EP1222332A2 (fr) 2002-07-17
EP1094143A1 (fr) 2001-04-25
WO2001029304A3 (fr) 2001-09-13

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