WO2013153463A2

WO2013153463A2 - Automatic triple motion steam iron

Info

Publication number: WO2013153463A2
Application number: PCT/IB2013/001755
Authority: WO
Inventors: Wasfi Alshdaifat; Eida Almuhairbi; Farah Afif KASSAB
Original assignee: Wasfi Alshdaifat; Eida Almuhairbi; Kassab Farah Afif
Priority date: 2013-08-08
Filing date: 2013-08-08
Publication date: 2013-10-17
Also published as: WO2013153463A3

Abstract

An automatic triple motion steam iron (20), is driven by a vertical motor (27), driving a camshaft (28), to rotate the cam (29) to push a first vertical metallic link (30) welded to the ironing and heat plates (21), (22), a horizontal spring is supporting the first link (30), such that when the cam (29) pushes the first link (30), the link (30) moves the plates (21), (22) forward, when the cam's (29) push is released, the spring retards back, retarding the link (30), and as a result the plates (21), (22). In the same, another second and third links are installed, such that the angle in-between each two links equals 120°, to reciprocate the plates (21), (22) from center to left to center to right. The plates (21), (22) are made to reciprocate flexibly, by connecting its top surface via another three L-shaped links (35), linked to rotatable balls, moving through empty disc grooves, made in the heat shield casing (24).

Description

AUTOMATIC TRIPLE MOTION STEAM IRON

Description of the Invention

Technical Field of Invention

This invention relates to an apparatus applying steam, heat and pressure on fabrics over ironing table, to be smoothened quickly and effortlessly.

Background Art

The idea behind ironing is to use a heated tool to remove wrinkles from fabrics, the normal temperature under which the heating is carried out is between 180-220 "Celsius, depending on the fabric's material, Ironing loosen the bonds between the fabric's material long-chains (polymer molecules), then the weight or press of the iron will straighten them, to get a shape which they will hold after getting cooler.

Through the history, many types of tools were developed to carry out the process of wrinkles removal from fabrics, the most common one is the electric v iron which was invented at 1882 by Henry W. Seeley, patented as "electric steam iron" on 6^th of June 1882 (U.S. Patent No. 259,054), even many formal developments were carried out o it since 130 years, its core design remained the same.

Another type used in the art is a commercial large heat pressing machine (ironing press), which can carry out ironing for a larger area of the fabric, even it is faster and easier than the electric flat iron, still it is expensive, and burns or glazes the fabric. Nowadays these are electrically operated, the oldest patents of them are found in U.S. Patents No.s: 1,644,929 and 3,406,472.

A bulky and large but less laborious machine, used for removing wrinkles are the steam cabinets, which are either using only steam, or steam with a pressing plates, but these are expensive, glazing or burning fabrics when fixed heated press plates are used, and using many tools, mechanisms... etc, some of these are found in U.S. Patents No.s: 3,840,187; 4,493,160; 5,075,989; 5,094,020; 5,305,484; 5,692,326; 5,815,961; and patent publication US 2004/0050118 A1. Another somewhat different device related to the same art is the steam brush, it is simply carried by hand, it is using a bristle brush or a smooth surface to smoothen the hang-up fabric, and the heated steam to remove the wrinkles while passing the steam up-down on the fabric part which is fixed from top by a hanger, and pulled from downside by the user's other hand, without the use of ironing board, it is relatively faster, easier, lighter, and compact device, providing constant steam, achieving proper penetration of steam into fabrics, many patents are filed related to a steam brush either hand-held, or portable ones, some of these are found in U.S. Patents No.s: 1,849,322; 2,849,736; 3,675,449; 3,690,024; 6,513,269 B2; 6,986,217 B2; 6,886,373.

But the steam brush also has its disadvantages, such as: its effective surface area is small, and so the user need to move his hand up-down too many times to cover the whole fabric, the lower side of each part of the fabric should be pulled by hand to smoothen and straighten it, exposing this hand to the heat of the steam, and so it is easy to accidently steam burn, for longer clothes, the user need to lean and bend, then stand repeatedly, and so it is uncomfortable, as the hand cannot apply a full 2-D tension, from all of the edges at once to achieve a full fabric smoothening and straightening, the final shape of clothes will not be wrinkle free, additionally it is not removing bigger wrinkles at all. As the target of fabrics ironing or steaming is removing the wrinkles, and as the normal famous way to achieve that is not only by moving a flat iron over the fabric, but by pressing on the steam iron, and manually pushing it periodically forward and backward, and side wards, a promising steam iron device simulating automatically these active and effective movements, should be able to carry out these completely, more fast than manual laborious procedures, and it should also overcome the side effects in regard of safety.

Disclosure of Invention

Brief Description

An automatic multiple motion steam iron, is used to remove effectively and effortlessly a fabric wrinkles, while the user is dragging the device over the fabric. It is modified to carry out these tasks, in cooperation with a fast time saving ironing process.

To achieve these, a mechanism simulating the effective and active motions that are made by the user repeatedly while he is carrying out the ironing process, in parallel with pressing and pushing the steam iron side wards and frontward and backward, to effectively guarantee the removal of the wrinkles.

Here, an inner mechanism is developed and built-in inside the flat iron body, over the inner lower casing that is located over the heat plate, the mechanism is based on a small motor, installed vertically downward, such that it is driving a camshaft, the cam at first rotates such that it pushes a first vertical link at its top spherical end, because this link is connected to the top surface of the heating plate, the link pushes the heat plate forward, after the cam is rotated and its push is released from the link, a retard horizontal spring pressed and loaded by the link, retards back the link, and as a result the heat plate is retarded back, in another way, completing one reciprocation. In the same, another second and third links are installed, such that the angle in- between the first and second link or third link equals 120°. When the cam pushes the second left link, the heat plate reciprocates from the center to the left, and then to the center, under the effect of the spring retard, the same occurs for the right link. The heat plate is made to reciprocate flexibly, by connecting its top surface via another three L-shaped links, linked to rotatable balls, moving through empty disc grooves, made on the heat shield casing, over the heat plate, such that this arrangement supports the reciprocating movement of the heat plate. Brief Description of the Drawings:

• FIG. 1 : Illustrates a 3-dimensional exploded view of the automatic multiple motion steam iron.

• FIG. 2: Illustrates a three dimensional view of the inner parts of the automatic multiple motion steam iron.

• FIG. 3: Illustrates a three dimensional view of the of the reciprocating mechanism parts installations on the heat plate.

• FIG. 4 (A, B): Illustrates a three dimensional view for the zero location of the cam before reciprocation.

• FIG. 5 (A, B): Illustrates a three dimensional view for the center- forward- center reciprocation.

• FIG. 6 (A, B): Illustrates a three dimensional view for the center- left- center reciprocation.

• FIG. 7 (A, B): Illustrates a three dimensional view for the center- right- center reciprocation.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention (Detailed Description):

In order to make it easy to carry out the invention, a detailed description of the parts of the invention, supported with figures is provided here, as each part has many features, we made it easy to read, by referring to each feature with a number included in the parts description text, and in the parts numbering list, the numbering of the parts features is indicated here by starting it sequentially from number 20, whenever a part feature appears in a text, it is directly assigned its required serial number. As example in FIG. 1, the parts' features are arranged sequentially from number 20 to 21, 22...

1- An automatic multiple motion steam iron apparatus 20 (FIG.s 1, 2, 3): The apparatus is having its hot ironing plate 21 reciprocating forward and said wards, to remove effectively and effortlessly a fabric wrinkles, while the user is dragging it over the fabric. It is modified to carry out these tasks, in cooperation with a fast, and time saving ironing process. The apparatus 20 is made mainly of the same parts found in a normal steam iron, the ironing plate 21, the heat plate (coil) 22, the thermostat / electrical connections / controls block 23, the inner casing 24 the water reservoir 25, the body and handle 26. To achieve the reciprocation of the ironing plate 21, a mechanism is used simulating the effective and active motions that are made by the user repeatedly, while he is carrying out the ironing process, wherein he presses and pushes the steam iron side wards and front and back, to effectively guarantee the removal of the wrinkles.

Here, an inner mechanism is developed and built in-inside the flat iron 20, over the inner lower casing 24 that is located over the heat coil plate 22 and the hot ironing plate 21, the mechanism is based on a small motor 27, is supported and installed vertically downward, such that it is driving from the bottom side of it a camshaft 28, the cam 29 at first rotates its tapered end from a zero position (FIG. 4 (A, B)) toward a first vertical link 30, pushing it from its top spherical end 31, because this link 30 is passing through the heat plate 22 to the ironing plate 21, the link 30 pushes both plates forward (FIG. 5 (A, B)) (Note how the ironing plate 21 is protruding forward in the figure), then, after the cam 29 is rotated more, and its tapered end is moved away from the link 30, its push is released from the link 30, as a result a retard horizontal spring 32, which was pressed and loaded by the link 30, retards back the link 30, and as a result the both plates are retarded / pushed back, in another way, completing one reciprocation.

In the same, another second link 33 and third link 34 are installed, such that each angle in-between each two links equals 120°. When the cam 29 pushes the second left link 33, the heat and ironing plates reciprocate from the center to the left (FIG. 6 (A, B) (Note how the ironing plate 21 is protruding to left side in the figure), and then to the center, under the effect of the spring retard, the same occurs for the right link 34 (FIG. 7 (A, B) (Note how the ironing plate 21 is protruding to right side in the figure). The heat and ironing plates 21, 22 are made to reciprocate flexibly, by connecting its top surface via three L-shaped links 35, linked to rotatable balls 36, moving through empty discs 37 grooves 38, made on the heat shield casing 24, over the heat plate 22, such that this arrangement supports the reciprocating movement of the heat plate 22 and ironing plate 21 (FIG.s 1- 7).

Note: For safety reasons, the multiple motion steam iron 20, should stop reciprocating, once the hands of the user are removed from it, because if it continues reciprocating without being held, it will reciprocate in a way that may damage the fabric, or the apparatus may move until falling down, causing injuries or damages, so two sets of safety tools should be used to avoid this, the first is to use a conventional spring loaded switch, on the top of the apparatus handle, such that the electric current passes to the reciprocating mechanism, only when the user is pressing by his hand palm on the switch.

Another accompanying safety tool, is to use a sensor like the TS12 sensorSteam, that is developed by Siemens, to generate steam only when such a sensor in the handle of the steam iron is touched, wherein here, its job will be not only to shutoff the steam, but also to stop the reciprocating motion of the heat and ironing plates when the user release the handle of the steam iron.

Industrial applicability

In addition to all of the mentioned reasons before about the important needs for an active, safe, efficient automatically triple motion reciprocating ironing- steaming apparatus and the modes of carrying out it using conventional available parts with innovative modifications, the subject invention has the following benefits:

1- Parts that can be easily made from available materials used in the art.

2- Available parts used in the art or similarly, which are already tested and developed, wherein their same original materials can be reshaped through easy designed molds, to prepare the parts of this invention.

3- Genuine mechanical modifications which costs little extra parts and parts costs, but with duplicated benefits.

4- Compared to conventional home ironing or steaming devices, wherin the user need to spend a big effort in reciprocating the steam iron by hand, specially for big amounts of fabrics, cloths... etc, which causes hand pain and stress, the invented mechanism, cancel these drawbacks, and provides a fast, safe, and active device.

5- The device can be simply described to be: Just press-guide (drag) active device.

Parts Drawings Index:

20 Automatic triple motion steam iron.

21 Ironing plate.

22 Heat plate.

23 Thermostat / electrical connections / controls block.

24 Inner casing.

25 Water reservoir.

26 Apparatus body and handle.

27 Motor.

28 Camshaft.

29 Cam.

30 First vertical link.

31 Spherical end.

32 Horizontal spring.

33 Second vertical link.

34 Third vertical link.

35 L shaped link.

36 Rotatable ball.

37 Empty disc.

38 Groove.

Claims

1- A motorized triple motion steam iron (20) comprising: a reciprocating ironing plate (21) a reciprocating heat plate (22); a heating thermostat / electrical connections / control block (23); a heat shield casing (24); a steam iron handle (26); a drive motor (27); a camshaft (28); a three cam follower vertical links (30), (33), (34); a three spherical ends (31); a three retard horizontal springs (32); a three L-shaped links (35); a three rotatable balls (36); a three empty discs (37).

2- The automatic triple motion steam iron (20) according to claim 1, wherein the drive motor (27) is installed in the inner front part of the steam iron (20) vertically downward, such that it is driving from the bottom side of it a camshaft (28), the cam (29) at first rotates its tapered end from a zero position toward a first vertical link (30), pushing it from its top spherical end (31), to push both plates (21), (22) then, after the cam (29) is rotated more, and its tapered end is moved away from the link (30), its push is released from the link (30), as a result a retard horizontal spring (32), which was pressed and loaded by the link (30), retards back the link (30), and as a result the both plates (21), (22) are retarded / pushed back, in another way, completing one reciprocation.

3- The automatic triple motion steam iron (20) according to claim 1, wherein the second and third links (33), (34) are installed, such that each angle in- between each two links equals 120°.

4- The automatic triple motion steam iron (20) according to claim 1, wherein the cam (29) pushes on the second right link (33), and the second spring (32) retards of the second link (33), makes the ironing and heat plate (21), (22) reciprocates from the center to the left, and then to the center, while when the cam (29) pushes the third link (34), and then rotates away from it, such that the third spring (32) retards the third link (34), a reciprocating center to right, then right to center (side reciprocation) results.

5- The automatic triple motion steam iron (20) according to claim 1, wherein the ironing and heat plates (21), (22) are made to reciprocate flexibly, by connecting its top surface via three L-shaped links (35), linked to three rotatable balls (36), moving through three empty discs (37) grooves (38), respectively, where the discs (37) are made on the heat shield casing (24).