CN113272492B

CN113272492B - Clothes treating apparatus

Info

Publication number: CN113272492B
Application number: CN201980081751.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 铃木肇; 永井孝之
Original assignee: Qingdao Haier Washing Machine Co Ltd; Haier Smart Home Co Ltd; Aqua Co Ltd
Current assignee: Qingdao Haier Washing Machine Co Ltd; Haier Smart Home Co Ltd; Aqua Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-12-26
Filing date: 2019-12-09
Publication date: 2023-08-18
Anticipated expiration: 2039-12-09
Also published as: JP2020103367A; WO2020135004A1; CN113272492A

Abstract

A clothes treating apparatus capable of improving the drying and wrinkle smoothing performance. A laundry treatment device (1) is provided with: a housing chamber (200) for housing the clothes in a suspended state; a first supply unit for supplying warm air into the housing chamber (200); a second supply means for supplying steam into the housing chamber (200); and an air circulation unit (600) that sucks in air in the housing chamber (200) and blows the sucked air into the housing chamber (200) so that the blown air is directed to suspended clothes. The air circulation unit (600) includes: a circulation fan (610) that blows out air sucked from the suction port (615) from the discharge port (616); a louver (621) that is in contact with the air blown out from the outlet (616) and diverts the air; and a louver motor (622) that swings the louver (621) to change the turning angle of the air.

Description

Clothes treating apparatus

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a laundry treatment apparatus that performs a process such as drying and wrinkle smoothing on laundry.

Background

Conventionally, there is known a clothes treating apparatus in which clothes are hung in a storage portion, and wrinkles of the clothes can be smoothed out by drying the clothes with warm air or by steam. For example, patent document 1 describes an example of such a laundry treatment apparatus.

In the above-described laundry treatment apparatus, if the contact efficiency of warm air with laundry is poor, the drying efficiency is deteriorated, so that it is difficult to improve the drying performance. Therefore, in order to improve the drying performance, it may be required to make the contact efficiency of warm air with laundry good.

In the above-described laundry treatment apparatus, the surface of the laundry contacted by the steam is smoothed by the self weight of the laundry, and wrinkles of the laundry are removed, but if a further force such as that which smoothes the surface of the laundry can be applied to the laundry, the performance of smoothing wrinkles can be improved.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2018-057413

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a laundry treatment apparatus capable of improving drying and wrinkle smoothing performance.

Solution for solving the problem

The laundry treatment apparatus according to the main aspect of the present invention comprises: a housing chamber for housing the clothes in a suspended state; a warm air supply unit for supplying warm air into the storage room; a steam supply unit configured to supply steam into the storage chamber; and an air circulation unit that sucks in air in the storage chamber and blows the sucked air into the storage chamber, and that causes the blown air to travel to suspended clothes. Wherein the air circulation part includes: a circulating fan for blowing out the air sucked from the air suction port from the air discharge port; a turning member which is in contact with the air blown out from the outlet port and turns the air; and a driving part swinging the steering member to change the steering angle of the air.

According to the above configuration, when drying clothes, warm air is supplied into the housing chamber by the warm air supply unit, and the air circulation unit can be operated at this time. In this case, air in the housing room warmed by the supply of warm air is taken in from the intake port and blown out from the exhaust port as warm air. The blown warm air is turned by the turning member and directed to the clothes. At this time, the steering member swings to change the steering angle of the warm air, so that the warm air contacts the laundry from various directions. Thus, the contact efficiency between the warm air and the laundry becomes high, and the laundry is easily dried.

Further, the warm air contacts the laundry from various directions, that is, the direction in which the warm air presses the laundry changes, so that the hung laundry may shake. This makes it possible to make warm air contact with a portion of the clothing, such as between the sleeve and the main body, which is difficult to reach in a stationary state of the clothing. In addition, dust attached to the laundry becomes easy to fall.

In addition, when the wrinkles of the clothes are smoothed, the steam is supplied into the accommodating chamber by the steam supply part, and at this time, the air circulation part can be operated. In this case, the air taken into the housing chamber from the intake port is blown out from the exhaust port in the form of wind. The blown wind is deflected by the swinging deflector member, thereby coming into contact with the laundry from various directions, and shaking the laundry. When the laundry is shaken in a suspended state, a force such as a centrifugal force is easily applied to the laundry. Thus, the surface of the laundry against which the steam hits is easily smoothed, and wrinkles of the laundry are easily stretched. In addition, since the laundry is shaken, dust attached to the laundry can be dropped.

Further, when the wrinkles of the laundry are smoothed, the air circulation unit can be operated before the steam is supplied to the storage chamber. In this case, the laundry may shake before the laundry is wetted with the steam, and thus dust may easily fall from the laundry.

In the laundry treatment apparatus according to this aspect, the following structure may be adopted: the ozone supply unit is provided to supply ozone into the housing chamber.

According to the above configuration, when deodorizing clothes, warm air is supplied into the housing chamber by the ozone supply unit, and the air circulation unit can be operated at this time. In this case, air containing ozone in the housing chamber is taken in from the intake port and blown out from the exhaust port in the form of ozone wind. The blown ozone wind is turned by the turning member that swings, thereby coming into contact with the laundry from various directions. Thus, the contact efficiency between the ozone wind and the laundry becomes high, and the laundry becomes easy to be deodorized. Further, by shaking the laundry, ozone can be made to reach a portion of the laundry which is difficult to reach in a stationary state of the laundry, and furthermore, dust attached to the laundry is easily dropped.

In the laundry treatment apparatus according to the present aspect, a holding portion for holding the laundry in a suspended state may be provided in the storage chamber. In this case, the circulating fan is a cross flow fan including a fan having an impeller arranged in a cylindrical shape and having an axial dimension larger than a radial dimension, and is disposed at a bottom of the housing chamber in an orientation in which an axial direction of the fan intersects a front-rear direction of the laundry suspended by the holding portion.

According to the above configuration, since wind can be made to travel toward the laundry so as to have a larger range in the lateral direction, that is, the width direction of the laundry, the wind can be made to contact with the laundry better, and the laundry can be dried better or wrinkles of the laundry can be smoothed better.

In the laundry treatment apparatus according to this aspect, the following structure may be adopted: the suction port is opened in a direction along a bottom surface of the housing chamber at a position close to the bottom surface. In this case, a filter for trapping dust is provided between the suction port and the fan in the circulation fan.

According to the above configuration, dust falling onto the bottom surface of the housing chamber is easily sucked into the air inlet together with air flowing along the bottom surface of the housing chamber to the air inlet, and is easily trapped by the filter provided in the air inlet. Therefore, dust is not easily left on the bottom surface of the housing chamber.

In the case of the above-described structure, the lower end of the suction port may be higher than the bottom surface of the housing chamber. In this case, an inclined portion having an inclined surface rising from the bottom surface of the housing chamber toward the lower end of the suction port is provided in front of the suction port.

According to the above configuration, even if the circulation fan adopts a configuration in which the lower end of the suction port is higher than the bottom surface of the housing chamber, dust on the bottom surface of the housing chamber moves on the inclined surface of the inclined portion and is smoothly taken into the suction port.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a laundry treating apparatus capable of improving drying and wrinkle smoothing performance.

The effects and the meaning of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the embodiments shown. However, the following embodiments are merely examples of the practice of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments.

Drawings

Fig. 1 (a) is a front view of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment, and fig. 1 (b) is a right side view of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment taken along the position of the first supply unit.

Fig. 3 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment taken along the position of the second supply unit.

Fig. 4 (a) and (b) are top cross-sectional views of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment taken along the position of the exhaust gas filtering unit.

Fig. 5 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment taken along a position of the suction duct of the first supply unit.

Fig. 6 is a front cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus according to the embodiment, taken along a front position of the air circulation unit.

Fig. 7 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus of the embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a laundry treatment apparatus according to an embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing operation control of the laundry treatment apparatus according to the embodiment.

Fig. 10 is a front cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus according to modification 1, taken along a front position of the air circulation unit.

Fig. 11 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus of modification 1.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing operation control of the laundry treatment apparatus according to modification 1.

Description of the reference numerals

1: a laundry treatment apparatus; 200: a housing chamber; 250: a clothing rack (holding part); 300: a first supply unit (warm air supply unit, ozone supply unit); 400: a second supply unit (steam supply part); 600: an air circulation unit (air circulation unit); 610: a circulation fan; 611: a fan; 611a: an impeller; 615: a suction inlet; 616: a discharge port; 621: louvers (steering members); 622: a shutter motor (driving unit); 600A: an air circulation unit (air circulation unit); 610A: a circulation fan; 633: a filter; 635: a suction inlet; 636: an inclined portion.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 (a) is a front view of the laundry treating apparatus 1, and fig. 1 (b) is a right side view of the laundry treating apparatus 1. Fig. 2 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating device 1 taken along the position of the first supply unit 300. In fig. 2, the second supply unit 400 and the air circulation unit 600 are omitted from illustration. Fig. 3 is a front cross-sectional view of the laundry treating device 1 taken along the position of the second supply unit 400. Fig. 4 (a) and (b) are top cross-sectional views of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along the position of the exhaust gas filtering unit 270. In fig. 4 (b), the cover 240 is removed. In fig. 3, 4 (a) and (b), illustration of the air circulation unit 600 is omitted. Fig. 5 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along a position of the suction duct 350 of the first supply unit 300. Fig. 6 is a front cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus 1 taken along a front position of the air circulation unit 600. Fig. 7 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus 1. In fig. 2, the flow of ozone-containing air and warm air is shown by solid arrows. In fig. 3, the flow of steam is shown by solid arrows, and the flow of dew water is shown by broken arrows. Further, in fig. 5, the flow of the outside air is shown by solid arrows. In fig. 6 and 7, the flow of the circulating air is shown by solid arrows and broken arrows.

The laundry treatment apparatus 1 includes a casing 100, and the casing 100 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape with a longitudinal length. Legs 110 are provided at four corners of the outer bottom surface of the case 100. A housing room 200 for housing various kinds of clothes such as a suit and a coat in a suspended state is arranged inside the case 100. The housing chamber 200 has a longitudinally long rectangular parallelepiped shape. In addition, a first supply unit 300 capable of supplying warm air and ozone to the housing chamber 200 and a second supply unit 400 capable of supplying steam to the housing chamber 200 are disposed below the housing chamber 200 in the interior of the case 100. The first supply unit 300 corresponds to a warm air supply unit and an ozone supply unit of the present invention, and the second supply unit 400 corresponds to a steam supply unit of the present invention.

The front surface of the housing chamber 200 is opened as an input port 201 for laundry. A portion of the front surface of the case 100 corresponding to the inlet 201 is opened. A door 500 is provided at the front surface of the case 100. The door 500 has substantially the same size as the front surface of the cabinet 100. The inlet 201 is covered by a door 500. The right end portion of the door 500 is coupled to the case 100 via a hinge portion, not shown, and the door 500 can be opened forward with the hinge portion as a fulcrum.

Inside the housing chamber 200, an air circulation unit 600 is disposed at the rear end of the bottom. The air circulation unit 600 sucks in air in the storage compartment 200 and blows the sucked air into the storage compartment 200, and causes the blown air to travel to suspended laundry.

Referring to fig. 2 and 4 (a) and (b), a first supply port 210 and a second supply port 220 are provided adjacent to each other in a central portion of a bottom surface of the housing chamber 200. The first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 have a substantially semicircular cylindrical shape having straight portions on both sides. The arcuate portion 211 of the first supply port 210 and the arcuate portion 221 of the second supply port 220 are curved in opposite directions from each other when viewed from above. Accordingly, the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 have a shape similar to a circular shape as shown by the one-dot chain line in fig. 4 (a). A small gap is provided between the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220, and an assembly boss 230 having an assembly hole 231 is provided in the gap.

A cover 240 is disposed above the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 so as to cover them. The cover 240 includes a disk-shaped top surface portion 241 and a peripheral surface portion 242 extending obliquely downward from the peripheral edge of the top surface portion 241. The top surface portion 241 has a size larger than the combined size of the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220. A shaft 243 protruding downward is formed at the center of the rear surface of the top surface portion 241. The shaft 243 is fitted into the fitting hole 231 of the fitting boss 230 so that a predetermined gap can be formed between the top surface portion 241 of the cover 240 and the first and second supply ports 210 and 220. A plurality of discharge holes 244 are formed throughout the entire circumference of the peripheral surface portion 242 of the cover 240. The discharge hole 244 has a square shape that is long in the radial direction of the cover 240, and is located around the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220, that is, outside the projection area of the first supply port 210 and the second supply port 220 in the cover 240. Thereby, dust and foreign matter falling from the laundry becomes less likely to enter the first and second supply ports 210 and 220 through the discharge hole 244. A predetermined gap is provided between the outer peripheral edge of the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200.

A hanger 250 is provided at the left and right central portions of the top surface of the housing room 200. The clothes stand 250 includes a rod 251 extending in the front-rear direction and a support plate 252 supporting front-rear ends of the rod 251 from the top surface of the housing chamber 200. The hanger with the laundry is hung on the rod 251 of the hanger stand 250. Thus, the laundry is maintained in a state of being hung from the top surface of the receiving chamber 200 by the hanger stand 250. The hanger 250 corresponds to a holding portion of the present invention.

An exhaust port 202 is formed in the rear surface of the housing chamber 200 at an upper portion. In the present embodiment, the exhaust port 202 is provided at the right end portion of the rear surface of the housing chamber 200, but may be provided at the center portion or the left end portion. An exhaust duct 260 is connected to the exhaust port 202, and the exhaust duct 260 is exposed to the outside from the rear surface of the casing 100.

An exhaust filter unit 270 is removably attached to the exhaust port 202. The exhaust gas filtering unit 270 includes an ozone removing filter 271 and a filter cover 272 housing the ozone removing filter 271. An activated carbon/catalyst filter can be used in the ozone removal filter 271. The filter cover 272 is provided with a plurality of exhaust windows 273.

Referring to fig. 2 and 5, the first supply unit 300 includes: a first supply duct 310, an ozone generator 320, a heater 330, a blower fan 340, an air suction duct 350, and an ozone removal filter 360.

In the first supply duct 310, the inlet 311 is connected to the outlet 342 of the blower fan 340, and the outlet 312 is connected to the inlet of the first supply port 210. An ozone generator 320 is disposed near the inlet 311 in the first supply pipe 310. The first supply duct 310 has the following shape: extends leftward from the inlet 311, is bent in a rightward folded manner from a portion beyond the arrangement position of the ozone generator 320, and then extends upward to the first supply port 210.

The ozone generator 320 is a discharge type ozone generator, and generates a discharge such as corona discharge or silent discharge between a pair of electrodes, thereby generating ozone from air passing between the pair of electrodes. The heater 330 is disposed in the first supply duct 310 on the side of the first supply port 210 with respect to the ozone generator 320, and heats the air flowing in the first supply duct 310. As the heater 330, for example, a PTC heater can be used.

The blower fan 340 is a centrifugal fan, and has a suction port 341 provided on a side surface and a discharge port 342 provided on a peripheral surface. The blower fan 340 takes in air from the suction inlet 341 and sends the taken-in air to the ozone generator 320 in the first supply duct 310. As the blower fan 340, a fan other than a centrifugal fan, for example, an axial fan may be used.

An intake port 101 is formed in the front surface of the case 100 at a position facing the intake port 341 of the blower fan 340. An intake duct 350 is provided between the intake port 101 and the intake port 341.

The suction duct 350 includes a filter housing 351 having a front surface opened, and a connection duct 352 extending rearward from the filter housing 351. The filter case 351 is connected to the air inlet 101 of the casing 100. The connection duct 352 is connected to the suction port 341 of the blower fan 340. The connection pipe 352 is connected to the filter housing 351 through a communication hole 353.

The ozone removal filter 360 is housed in the filter case 351. As with the ozone removal filter 271, an activated carbon/catalyst filter can be used in the ozone removal filter 360. The inlet 101 is provided with a dust filter 120 for removing dust and the like contained in the air taken in from the inlet 101.

In the door 500, a plurality of ventilation holes 501 are formed at positions corresponding to the air inlet 101 of the case 100 in the rear surface, and an air intake 502 is formed in the bottom surface. Inside the door 500, the intake 502 communicates with a plurality of vent holes 501. When the blower fan 340 is operated, external air is taken into the suction duct 350 through the intake 502, the ventilation hole 501, and the suction port 101.

Referring to fig. 3, the second supply unit 400 includes a second supply pipe 410, a steam generating device 420, and a drain device 430. The second supply duct 410 has a shape in which a lower portion bulges rightward. The second supply pipe 410 is provided with a lead-out port 411 connected to an inlet of the second supply port 220 at an upper end portion. The second supply pipe 410 is provided with an inlet 412 on the right side surface of the lower portion. Further, the second supply pipe 410 is provided with a water storage 413 below the inlet 412 at a position where the bottom thereof is lower than the inlet 412. An outlet 414 is provided on the bottom surface of the water reservoir 413.

The steam generating device 420 includes a water supply tank 440, a water supply tank 450, a pump assembly 460, and a steam generator 470. The water supply tank 440 stores water supplied to the steam generator 470. The water supply tank 440 is detachably provided in a water supply tank installation portion, not shown, in the housing 100. When the water supply tank 440 is installed in the water supply tank installation section, the supply port 441 is connected to the inlet 451 of the water supply tank 450 from above. The supply port 441 is provided with an on-off valve 442, and when the supply port 441 is connected to the inlet 451, the on-off valve 442 is opened to supply water from the water supply tank 440 to the water supply tank 450, and the entire water supply tank 450 is filled with water.

The pump assembly 460 includes a pump 461, a connection hose 462, and a water supply hose 463. The suction port of the pump 461 is connected to the outlet 452 of the water supply tank 450 through a connection hose 462. A water supply hose 463 is connected to the discharge port of the pump 461. The pump 461 draws up the water in the water supply tank 450 through the connection hose 462 and sends the water to the steam generator 470 through the water supply hose 463.

The steam generator 470 includes a main body 471 and a heater 472, and is attached to the inlet 412 of the second supply pipe 410 via a heat insulating member, not shown. The main body 471 is formed of a metal material such as aluminum die cast, and has a steam generation chamber 473 therein. A water supply port 474 connected to a water supply hose 463 is provided above the steam generating chamber 473 in the main body 471, and a discharge port 475 connected to the inside of the second supply duct 410 is provided to the right of the steam generating chamber 473. The heater 472 is embedded in the main body 471.

The main body 471 is heated by the heater 472 to be high temperature. The water droplets fed from the pump 461 drop to the bottom surface of the steam generating chamber 473 and evaporate, thereby generating high-temperature steam. The generated steam is discharged into the second supply pipe 410 through the discharge port 475.

The drain 430 includes a drain tank 480 and a drain hose 490. The drain hose 490 has a connection port 491 at an upper end portion thereof, which is connected to the discharge port 414 of the second supply pipe 410. A baffle 492 is disposed on the connection port 491 so as to close the discharge port 414. The baffle 492 is, for example, a mesh plate made of metal and having a fine mesh for preventing ozone supplied into the housing chamber 200 from being easily leaked into the case 100 through the drain hose 490 during the deodorizing/sterilizing operation.

The drain tank 480 is a container for recovering dew water generated in the second supply pipe 410. The drain tank 480 is detachably provided in a drain tank installation portion, not shown, in the tank body 100. When the drain tank 480 is provided at the drain tank installation portion, the inlet 481 thereof is located directly below the lower end of the drain hose 490.

The front surface of the casing 100 is provided with the inlet/outlet 102 of the water supply tank 440 and the drain tank 480 provided in the casing 100 at the front positions of these tanks 440 and 480. The inlet/outlet 102 is covered with an openable/closable cover 103 (see fig. 1). The user can take out and put in the water supply tank 440 and the drain tank 480 into the tank 100 by opening the door 500 and opening the cover 103.

Referring to fig. 6 and 7, the air circulation unit 600 includes a circulation fan 610 and a louver mechanism 620. The air circulation unit 600 corresponds to an air circulation unit of the present invention.

The circulation fan 610 is a cross flow fan including a fan 611, a housing 612, and a fan motor 613. The fan 611 has an impeller 611a arranged in a cylindrical shape, and an axial dimension is substantially larger than a radial dimension. In the present embodiment, the axial dimension of the fan 611 is set to be the same as the width of a standard-sized laundry such as an L-sized sportswear. In the fan 611, a fan shaft 614 is provided at the center. Both end portions of the fan shaft 614 protrude from both end surfaces of the fan 611.

The fan 611 is housed in the housing 612, and both end portions of the fan shaft 614 are rotatably supported on both side surfaces of the housing 612. The housing 612 has a suction port 615 that opens upward and forward on the front side of the fan 611, and a discharge port 616 that opens upward on the rear side of the fan 611. The axial dimensions of the suction port 615 and the discharge port 616 are substantially the same as those of the fan 611. That is, the suction port 615 and the discharge port 616 have axially long shapes.

The right end of the fan shaft 614 penetrates the right side surface of the housing 612 and further penetrates the right side surface of the housing chamber 200. A portion of the right side surface of the housing room 200 corresponding to the air circulation unit 600 is recessed inward, and a fan motor 613 is mounted on the outer side of the portion. The fan shaft 614 penetrating the right side surface of the housing chamber 200 is coupled to a rotor (not shown) of the fan motor 613.

The fan motor 613 rotationally drives the fan 611 via a fan shaft 614. When the fan 611 rotates, air is sucked in from the suction port 615, and the sucked air is sent by the fan 611 and blown out from the discharge port 616.

The shutter mechanism 620 includes a shutter 621 and a shutter motor 622. The louver 621 corresponds to a steering member of the present invention, and the louver motor 622 corresponds to a driving portion of the present invention.

The louver 621 has a square shape long in the axial direction of the circulation fan 610, and has a size slightly larger than the discharge port 616 of the circulation fan 610. Eave portions 623 are provided at both left and right end portions of the louver 621, and louver shafts 624 are provided at lower end portions of the eave portions 623. The circulation fan 610 is provided with a support portion 617 at the rear upper end portion of both side surfaces of the housing 612. The louver shafts 624 on both sides of the louver 621 are rotatably supported by the supporting portions 617 on both sides of the housing 612. Thus, the louver 621 is located above the discharge opening 616 and can swing in the up-down direction.

The right end of the shutter shaft 624 penetrates the right support portion 617 and further penetrates the right side surface of the housing chamber 200. A louver motor 622 is mounted above the fan motor 613 on the outer side of the right side surface of the housing chamber 200. The shutter shaft 624 penetrating the right side surface of the housing chamber 200 is coupled to a rotor (not shown) of the shutter motor 622.

The shutter motor 622 swings the shutter 621 via the shutter shaft 624 by rotating forward and backward by a predetermined rotation angle. The air blown upward from the discharge port 616 of the circulation fan 610 is turned by contact with the louver 621. The air turning angle varies with the angle of the swinging louver 621, and the direction in which the air, i.e., wind, is directed varies.

The circulation fan 610, that is, the air circulation unit 600 is disposed at the rear end of the bottom of the housing chamber 200 in an orthogonal direction in the present embodiment in an orientation in which the axial direction of the fan 611 intersects the front-rear direction of the laundry suspended by the hanger stand 250. At this time, in the circulation fan 610, the center of the fan 611 in the axial direction is located at the center of the housing room 200 in the lateral direction, similarly to the rod 251 of the hanger stand 250.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the laundry treating apparatus 1.

The laundry treatment apparatus 1 includes an operation unit 701 and a control unit 702 in addition to the above-described configuration.

The operation unit 701 includes an operation button such as a selection button for selecting an operation mode and a start button for starting an operation, and outputs an operation signal corresponding to the operation button operated by the user to the control unit 702.

The control part 702 includes a microcomputer, various driving circuits, etc., and controls the ozone generator 320, the heater 330, and the blower fan 340 of the first supply unit 300, the pump 461 and the heater 472 of the second supply unit 400, the fan motor 613, the louver motor 622, etc. of the air circulation unit 600.

The laundry treatment apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment can perform the following operations: a deodorizing/degerming operation for deodorizing/degerming the laundry, a drying operation for drying the laundry, and a wrinkle smoothing operation for smoothing wrinkles of the laundry.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing operation control of the laundry treatment apparatus 1.

When the operation of starting the operation is performed, the control section 702 determines that any one of the deodorizing/sterilizing operation, the drying operation, and the wrinkle smoothing operation has been selected (S1).

In the case where the deodorization/sterilization operation is selected (S1: deodorization/sterilization), the deodorization/sterilization operation is started, and the control section 702 performs the deodorization/sterilization process (S2). In the deodorizing/sterilizing process, in the first supply unit 300, the control part 702 causes the blower fan 340 and the ozone generator 320 to operate. As shown in fig. 5, the outside air is taken into the intake duct 350 through the intake port 101, and ozone contained in the air is removed by the ozone removal filter 360 in the filter case 351. The ozone-removed air is fed into the first supply duct 310 through the blower fan 340.

As shown in fig. 2, the air flowing in the first supply duct 310 passes through the ozone generator 320, and at this time, ozone generated in the ozone generator 320 is mixed into the air. In this way, the air containing ozone reaches the first supply port 210 through the first supply duct 310, and is discharged from the first supply port 210 into the housing chamber 200. The discharged ozone-containing air collides with the cover 240 and spreads around, and a part of the air is discharged from the plurality of discharge holes 244 and the rest is discharged from between the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the housing room 200. Thus, the air containing ozone is diffused through the cover 240 and goes upward toward the laundry, and contacts the laundry over a large area. The laundry is deodorized/sterilized by the deodorizing/sterilizing effect of ozone.

The air having the ozone concentration reduced by the deodorization/sterilization of the laundry is discharged to the outside of the cabinet 100 through the ozone removal filter 271 and the exhaust port 202 of the exhaust filtering unit 270 provided at the upper portion of the receiving chamber 200. Ozone in the air is removed by the ozone removal filter 271.

Further, in the deodorizing/sterilizing process, in the air circulation unit 600, the control unit 702 drives the fan motor 613 to operate the circulation fan 610, and simultaneously drives the louver motor 622 to swing the louver 621 in the up-down direction. In this case, the louver 621 may swing continuously or may stop for a predetermined time every round trip or a plurality of round trip oscillations.

As shown in fig. 7, air containing ozone in the housing chamber 200 is taken into the casing 612 through the intake port 615, and is blown out from the exhaust port 616 as an ozone wind. The blown ozone wind is diverted through the louver 621 to be directed toward the laundry. At this time, the louver 621 swings such that the turning angle of the ozone wind is changed, and thus the ozone wind contacts the laundry from various directions. Thereby, the contact efficiency of the ozone wind with the laundry becomes good, and the laundry becomes easy to deodorize/sterilize. In addition, the laundry is pushed by the ozone wind from various directions, so that the hung laundry may shake. Thus, ozone can be made to contact a portion of the clothing that is difficult to reach in a stationary state of the clothing, such as between the sleeve and the body of the clothing. In addition, dust attached to the laundry is easily dropped.

When a predetermined deodorizing/sterilizing time elapses, the control part 702 stops the operation of the ozone generator 320, the blower fan 340, the circulation fan 610, and the louver 621, ending the deodorizing/sterilizing process. Thus, the deodorizing/sterilizing operation is ended.

On the other hand, when the control unit 702 determines that the drying operation is selected in S1 (S1: drying), the drying operation is started, and the drying process is executed (S3). During the drying process, in the first supply unit 300, the control part 702 operates the blower fan 340 and the heater 330. As shown in fig. 2, the air taken in by the blower fan 340 and flowing in the first supply duct 310 is heated by the heater 330 to become warm air at a temperature suitable for drying (for example, about 60 ℃). Then, the warm air reaches the first supply port 210, and is discharged from the first supply port 210 into the storage chamber 200. The discharged warm air is diffused through the cover 240 and goes upward toward the laundry, like the air containing ozone, and contacts the laundry in a large area. Thereby, the laundry is dried. The warm air having taken moisture from the laundry is discharged to the outside through the air outlet 202.

Further, during the drying process, in the air circulation unit 600, the control unit 702 causes the circulation fan 610 to operate and causes the louver 621 to swing in the up-down direction. As shown in fig. 7, air in the housing room 200 warmed by the supply of warm air is taken into the casing 612 through the intake port 615, and is blown out from the exhaust port 616 as warm air. The blown warm air is turned by the swinging louver 621, thereby coming into contact with the laundry from various directions. Thus, the contact efficiency between the warm air and the laundry becomes high, and the laundry is easily dried. Further, the laundry is shaken, whereby warm air can be made to reach portions of the laundry that are difficult to reach in a stationary state of the laundry, and furthermore, dust attached to the laundry becomes easy to fall off.

When a predetermined drying time elapses, the control unit 702 stops the heater 330, the blower fan 340, the circulation fan 610, and the louver 621, and ends the drying process. Thus, the drying operation is ended.

On the other hand, when the control unit 702 determines that the wrinkle smoothing operation is selected in S1 (S1: wrinkle smoothing), the wrinkle smoothing operation is started, and the preparation process is executed (S4). In the preparation process, in the second supply unit 400, the control unit 702 operates the heater 472 of the steam generator 470 in a state where the pump 461 is stopped. Thereby, the temperature of the main body 471 of the steam generator 470 increases.

Further, in the preparation process, in the air circulation unit 600, the control unit 702 causes the circulation fan 610 to operate and causes the louver 621 to swing in the up-down direction. As shown in fig. 7, air in the housing chamber 200 is taken into the casing 612 through the intake port 615, and is blown out from the exhaust port 616 as wind. The blown wind is turned by the swinging louver 621, thereby contacting the laundry from various directions and shaking the laundry. Thereby, the dust becomes easily dropped from the laundry.

When the temperature of the main body 471 of the steam generator 470 is sufficiently high, the control part 702 ends the preparation process, performing the steam process (S5). During the steam, the control unit 702 operates the pump 461 while the heater 472 is continuously operated. As shown in fig. 3, high-temperature steam is generated in the steam generator 470 and discharged into the second supply pipe 410. The released steam rises in the second supply pipe 410 to reach the second supply port 220, and is discharged from the second supply port 220 into the storage chamber 200. The discharged steam collides with the cover 240 and spreads to the surrounding, wherein a part of the steam is discharged from the plurality of discharge holes 244, and the remaining part is discharged from between the cover 240 and the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200. In this way, the steam is diffused through the cover 240 and goes to the laundry upward, contacting the laundry over a large area. The wrinkles of the laundry are smoothed out by the moisture and heat possessed by the steam.

When the steam flows in the second supply duct 410, a part thereof may be condensed to generate dew. The dew condensation water flows downward and is accumulated in the water storage portion 413, and is discharged from the discharge port 414. The discharged dew water is recovered into the drain tank 480 through the drain hose 490. As described above, in the present embodiment, the water storage portion 413 for storing dew condensation water is provided below the inlet 412 of the second supply pipe 410, so that dew condensation water is prevented from flowing from the inlet 412 into the steam generator 470.

Further, during the steam process, the circulation fan 610 and the louver 621 continue to operate. The laundry is shaken by wind blown out from the discharge port 616 and turned by the louver 621. When the laundry is shaken in a suspended state, a force such as a centrifugal force is easily applied to the laundry. As a result, the surface of the laundry against which the steam hits becomes easily smoothed, and therefore, wrinkles of the laundry become easily stretched. In addition, although the laundry is not in a dry state in preparation because it is wetted with steam, dust attached to the laundry can be dropped by shaking the laundry.

When a predetermined steam supply time elapses, the control unit 702 stops the heater 472 and the pump 461, and ends the steam process.

Next, the control part 702 performs a drying process (S6). The drying process is the same as the drying operation in the drying operation, and the blower fan 340 and the heater 330 are operated, and the circulation fan 610 and the louver 621 are also continuously operated. Thereby, the laundry wetted with the steam is dried. The drying time of the drying process in the wrinkle smoothing operation may be set to be suitable for the wrinkle smoothing operation, and may be different from the drying time of the drying operation.

When the drying process is finished, the control part 702 performs a ventilation process (S7). That is, the control part 702 continues to operate the circulation fan 610 and the louver 621 after the drying process. Air in the storage chamber 200 is taken in from the intake port 615, blown out from the discharge port 616 into the storage chamber 200, and thereby outside air is taken in from the first supply port 210 into the storage chamber 200 through the intake duct 350 and the first supply duct 310 of the first supply unit 300, and the air in the storage chamber 200 is discharged to the outside through the exhaust port 202. This ventilates the inside of the storage chamber 200, and even if the inner wall or the like in the storage chamber 200 is wetted with steam, it dries out.

When a predetermined ventilation time elapses, the control unit 702 stops the circulation fan 610 and the louver 621, and ends the ventilation process. In this way, the wrinkle smoothing operation ends.

In the laundry treatment apparatus 1, in addition to the deodorizing/sterilizing operation, the drying operation, and the wrinkle smoothing operation, for example, the drying/deodorizing/sterilizing operation in which deodorizing/sterilizing is performed after drying may be performed.

Effect of the embodiments >

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when drying laundry, warm air can be brought into contact with laundry in the storage compartment 200 from all directions by operating the air circulation unit 600. Thus, the contact efficiency between the warm air and the laundry becomes high, and the laundry is easily dried. Further, the laundry is shaken by the warm air from various directions, whereby the warm air can be made to reach a portion of the laundry which is difficult to reach in a stationary state of the laundry, and furthermore, dust attached to the laundry is easily dropped.

Further, according to the present embodiment, when steam smoothing wrinkles are applied to the laundry, the laundry in the storage chamber 200 can be shaken by operating the air circulation unit 600. This makes it easy to stretch the wrinkles of the clothes, and the dust adhering to the clothes can be dropped.

Further, according to the present embodiment, when deodorizing/sterilizing laundry with ozone, the air circulation unit 600 is operated to bring ozone wind into contact with laundry in the housing chamber 200 from various directions. Thereby, the contact efficiency of the ozone wind with the laundry becomes good, and the laundry becomes easy to deodorize/sterilize. Further, the laundry is shaken by the ozone wind from various directions, whereby ozone can be made to reach a portion of the laundry which is difficult to reach in a stationary state of the laundry, and furthermore, dust attached to the laundry is easily dropped.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the circulation fan 610 is a cross flow fan including a fan 611 having an impeller 611a arranged in a cylindrical shape and having an axial dimension larger than a radial dimension, and is arranged at the bottom of the housing chamber 200 in an orientation in which the axial direction of the fan 611 intersects the front-rear direction of the laundry suspended by the hanger stand 250. Accordingly, as shown in fig. 6, since wind can be made to travel toward the laundry so as to have a larger range in the lateral direction, i.e., the width direction of the laundry, the wind can be brought into better contact with the laundry, and the laundry can be dried better or wrinkles of the laundry can be smoothed better.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications other than the above may be made to the embodiments of the present invention.

Modification 1 >

Fig. 10 is a front cross-sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treating apparatus 1 according to modification 1 taken along a front position of the air circulation unit 600A. Fig. 11 is a side sectional view of a main portion of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 of modification 1.

The air circulation unit 600 according to the above embodiment can be replaced with the air circulation unit 600A according to the modification example. In the air circulation unit 600A, the same components as those of the air circulation unit 600 of the above embodiment are given the same reference numerals.

The air circulation unit 600A includes a circulation fan 610A and a louver mechanism 620. The air circulation unit 600A corresponds to an air circulation unit of the present invention.

The circulation fan 610A includes: fan 611, housing 631, fan motor 613, filter housing 632, and filter 633. An opening 634 that opens forward is provided in the housing 631 on the front side of the fan 611, and the opening 634 is covered by a filter housing 632.

The filter housing 632 has a rectangular box shape with an open rear surface. A rectangular suction port 635 is provided on the front surface of the filter housing 632. The suction port 635 is opened in a direction along the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200, and its lower end is slightly higher than the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200. The suction port 635 is provided with a plurality of cross bars 635a extending in a grid shape.

An inclined portion 636 is provided below the suction inlet 635 on the front surface of the filter housing 632. The inclined portion 636 has an inclined surface rising from the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200 toward the lower end of the suction inlet 635.

The filter 633 is housed in the filter housing 632. In the circulation fan 610A, a filter 633 is located between the intake 635 and the fan 611, and captures dust sucked from the intake 635 together with air.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing operation control of the laundry treatment apparatus 1 according to modification 1.

In the present modification, in the deodorizing/sterilizing process (S2) of the deodorizing/sterilizing operation, the drying process (S3) of the drying operation, and the preparation process (S4) of the wrinkle smoothing operation, the steam process (S5), the drying process (S6), and the ventilation process (S7), dust adhering to the laundry falls onto the bottom surface of the housing room 200 by shaking the laundry when the air circulation unit 600, that is, the circulation fan 610A and the louver 621 are operated.

In this modification, the intake 635 of the circulation fan 610A is opened in a position close to the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200 in a direction along the bottom surface. Therefore, as shown in fig. 11, dust falling onto the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200 is easily sucked into the suction port 635 together with air flowing toward the suction port 635 along the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200. Then, the dust sucked into the suction port 635 is trapped by the filter 633. At this time, although the lower end of the suction port 635 is higher than the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200, since the inclined portion 636 is provided in front of the suction port 635, dust moves on the inclined surface of the inclined portion 636 and smoothly enters the suction port 635.

In addition, in the present modification, during the deodorizing/sterilizing operation and the drying process, the control section 702 performs the cleaning process after the deodorizing/sterilizing process and the drying process, respectively (S11, S12). During the cleaning, in the air circulation unit 600, the control unit 702 operates the circulation fan 610A and the louver 621 for a predetermined cleaning time. Dust attached to the laundry is substantially dropped during the deodorizing/sterilizing process and the drying process. Therefore, during the cleaning process, dust falling from the laundry is small, mainly dust falling onto the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200 is sucked from the suction port 635 and recovered by the filter 633. Therefore, by providing the cleaning process in the deodorizing/sterilizing operation and the drying operation, the effect of recovering dust falling on the bottom surface of the housing room 200 is improved. In the wrinkle smoothing operation, the ventilation process serves as a cleaning process.

In the cleaning process (S11, S12), the louver 621 may not be swung, so that the laundry is not easily shaken.

As described above, according to the present modification, dust falling onto the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200 can be collected by the filter 633 disposed in the circulation fan 610A, and therefore, it is not easy to form a state in which dust remains on the bottom surface of the housing chamber 200.

< other modifications >

In the above embodiment, both ozone and warm air are supplied from the first supply unit 300 into the storage chamber 200. However, the ozone supply unit for supplying ozone to the laundry treating apparatus 1 and the warm air supply unit for supplying warm air may be separately provided.

In the above embodiment, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 performs the deodorizing/sterilizing operation. However, the laundry treating apparatus 1 may not perform the deodorizing/sterilizing operation, and the ozone generator 320 may not be disposed in the first supply unit 300.

Further, the steam generator 470 of the second supply unit 400 has the following structure: the water fed from the pump 461 is dropped to the bottom surface of the high-temperature steam generation chamber 473 to evaporate, thereby generating steam. However, the steam generator 470 is not limited to the above-described structure, and may have the following structure: for example, a water tank storing water is heated to boil the water, thereby generating steam.

Further, in the above embodiment, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 is an exhaust type apparatus that takes in air from the outside through the air inlet 101 of the casing 100 and discharges the air to the outside through the air outlet 202 of the housing room 200. However, the laundry treatment apparatus 1 may be a circulation type apparatus in which the exhaust port 202 of the housing chamber 200 is connected to the intake port 101 of the casing 100 by a predetermined air path.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the air circulation unit 600 is disposed at the bottom of the housing chamber 200. However, the air circulation unit 600 may be disposed at a portion other than the bottom portion in the housing chamber 200. The air circulation unit 600 may be provided at the bottom of the outside of the housing chamber 200 or at a portion other than the bottom.

Further, in the present embodiment, although a cross-flow fan is used as the circulation fan 610, a fan other than a cross-flow fan such as a sirocco fan may be used.

In addition, the embodiment of the present invention can be modified in various ways as appropriate within the scope of the technical idea shown in the technical proposal.

Claims

1. A clothing processing device is characterized by comprising:

a housing chamber for housing the clothes in a suspended state;

a first supply port and a second supply port that are provided adjacent to each other at a central portion of a bottom surface of the housing chamber, and a cover that covers the first supply port and the second supply port;

a warm air supply unit connected to the first supply port and supplying warm air into the housing chamber;

a steam supply unit connected to the second supply port for supplying steam into the housing chamber;

an ozone supply unit connected to the first supply port for supplying ozone into the housing chamber; and

an air circulation unit for sucking air in the storage chamber and blowing the air into the storage chamber to make the blown air go to suspended clothes,

the air circulation part includes:

a circulation fan for blowing out air sucked from the suction port from the discharge port;

a turning member which is in contact with the air blown out from the outlet port and turns the air; and

a driving part for swinging the steering member to change the steering angle of the air;

the holding chamber is provided with a holding part for holding the clothes in a hanging state,

the circulating fan is a cross flow fan, and the cross flow fan comprises a fan which is provided with an impeller configured in a cylinder shape and has an axial dimension larger than a radial dimension, and is configured at the bottom of the accommodating chamber in an orientation that the axial direction of the fan crosses the front-back direction of the clothes hung by the holding part;

the lower end of the suction inlet is higher than the bottom surface of the accommodating chamber,

an inclined portion is provided in front of the suction port, and the inclined portion has an inclined surface that rises from the bottom surface of the housing chamber toward the lower end of the suction port.

2. The laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

the suction port is opened at a position close to the bottom surface of the accommodating chamber in a direction along the bottom surface,

a filter for trapping dust is provided between the suction port and the fan in the circulation fan.