EP4074884A1

EP4074884A1 - Iron

Info

Publication number: EP4074884A1
Application number: EP22168664.5A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Roberto Mondin; Muharem KATANIC; Luciano Scian
Original assignee: De Longhi Appliances SRL
Current assignee: De Longhi Appliances SRL
Priority date: 2021-04-16
Filing date: 2022-04-15
Publication date: 2022-10-19
Also published as: CN115216953A; IT202100009680A1

Abstract

Iron (10) provided with a limescale removal device (30), inserted in an evaporation chamber and comprising mechanical removal means (31) configured to contact a lower surface (22) of said evaporation chamber (21), with which there is associated an automatic drive device (40).

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns an iron, in particular of the steam type, for domestic or professional use, which is provided with a device for removing the limescale possibly present in its evaporation chamber.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Irons are known which are provided with a water tank and a boiler, or an evaporation chamber, in which, by means of an electrically heated element, the water arriving from the tank is transformed into steam, which is then delivered to the outside through an ironing plate provided with holes for the delivery of the steam itself, in order to improve ironing.
In some models of irons, the tank and/or the boiler, or evaporation chamber, instead of being integrated into the structure of the iron, are separated and connected to the latter by means of a duct.
One of the main problems of these irons is that, due to the process of water evaporation, there is often an extensive and non-homogeneous deposit of limescale in the evaporation chamber, especially when non-demineralized water is used. This problem occurs in particular in the zone where the water falls, that is, in the zone where the water comes into contact with the heated plate.
This negatively affects the functionality of the irons, since there is a significant reduction in the heat exchange capacity in the evaporation chamber, an uneven diffusion of the steam between the latter and the ironing plate and a reduction in the flow rate of steam from the latter.
Furthermore, during ironing, it may happen that, together with the steam, particles of limescale can escape from the holes of the ironing plate, which can dirty or irreparably damage the garment being ironed.
Normally, to remove the limescale, it is known to generate thermal shocks, by heating the plate and injecting cold water onto the heated plate, in order to break the limescale deposits and subsequently expel them through the holes in the plate or through a suitable discharge aperture. One disadvantage of this solution is that, if the operations to remove the limescale are not carried out regularly, the encrustations can become very thick, such as to create an insulating layer between the cold water and the hot plate, reducing both the efficiency of the iron and also the effectiveness of the thermal shocks.
Over time, in addition to solutions that provide to use chemical products that prevent the formation of limescale, various technical solutions have been proposed to solve the problem of the formation and/or removal of limescale in irons; however, these are rather complex, expensive and not always totally efficient.
In the international patent application WO-A-2018/216046 , property of the present Applicant, an iron is described which comprises a water tank, an ironing plate and an evaporation chamber, provided with an upper aperture through which the chamber receives the water contained in the tank; the chamber is configured to generate steam for the ironing plate, by means of an electrically heated zone. Moreover, in this iron there is an anti-limescale device which can be removably inserted into the evaporation chamber and which is configured to remove any limescale that may possibly have formed in the latter.
Even this known solution, although it is innovative compared with the state of the prior art, requires the user to regularly and diligently remove the limescale. In fact, in the event that a long interval of time elapses between one cleaning operation and the next, the limescale can accumulate and solidify between the removal device and the walls of the evaporation chamber, making it difficult to remove the anti-limescale device in order to clean it.
Other solutions provide removable devices provided with a collection chamber in correspondence with the rear part of the iron, in which any limescale possibly formed in the evaporation chamber can accumulate when the iron is placed in a vertical position, resting on the rear part.
One disadvantage of these solutions is that the limescale that accumulates in correspondence with the front part of the evaporation chamber is not actually eliminated, and can stratify and solidify, blocking the channels for the passage of the water or steam.
There is therefore a need to provide an iron which overcomes at least one of the disadvantages of the state of the art and which is provided with a simple and reliable device to remove limescale.
One purpose of the present invention is therefore to provide an iron with a device to remove limescale which is efficient, and which allows to remove the limescale regularly, in particular in the zone most subject to accumulation.
Another purpose of the invention is to provide an iron which prevents the accumulation and solidification of limescale in the evaporation chamber without requiring frequent maintenance by a user.
The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is set forth and characterized in the independent claims. The dependent claims describe other characteristics of the present invention or variants to the main inventive idea.
In accordance with the above purposes, an iron according to the present invention comprises a plate unit provided with an evaporation chamber having at least one lower surface and a limescale removal device inserted in the evaporation chamber, the limescale removal device being provided with mechanical limescale removal means configured to contact the lower surface and remove any limescale residues deposited thereon.
According to one aspect of the present invention, the iron comprises an automatic drive device associated with the limescale removal device and configured to move the latter along a longitudinal axis of the evaporation chamber, at least when the iron is placed in a vertical rest position, resting on a rear support surface.
The automatic drive device comprises an actuation member, located in correspondence with one end of the removal device, which is disposed protruding in a first operating position and is disposed flush in a second operating position, always with respect to a rear support surface of the iron.
The two operating positions entail a displacement of the actuation member and of the removal device, with the consequence that the connected mechanical means remove the limescale inside the evaporation chamber.
According to some embodiments, the automatic drive device comprises elastic return means configured to exert an axial thrust on the actuation member in order to keep it in the first operating position, or to return it to the first operating position.
In this way, every time the iron is positioned vertically, or picked up again to proceed with the ironing operations, the mechanical removal means are moved back and forth in the evaporation chamber, and they can scrape any limescale deposited in correspondence with the lower surface, preventing it from solidifying thereon.
According to some embodiments, the evaporation chamber comprises a water inlet aperture disposed on an upper surface thereof, and in the first and second operating positions the mechanical removal means are positioned respectively on one side and the other of such upper aperture, in such a way as to scrape the lower surface mainly in correspondence with the zone where the water falls.
Thanks to the automatic movement of the removal device, it is therefore possible to prevent the accumulation of limescale, particularly in the zone most subject to it, regardless of the user's diligence, extending the useful life of the iron.
Furthermore, the continuous scraping of limescale deposits ensures that the sizes of the solid particles remain small enough to be evacuated during normal ironing.
Preferably, the evaporation chamber is closed toward the front part of the iron by means of a front wall, and the mechanical removal means, in the second operating position, are disposed substantially in contact with it.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, the removal device comprises an oblong member that has a cross-section much smaller than the cross-section of the evaporation chamber.
According to some embodiments, the mechanical removal means can comprise at least one scraping element substantially in the shape of a spatula, having a width coherent with the width of the lower surface, or possibly slightly smaller than it. In this way, during the movement of the removal device in the evaporation chamber, it is possible to remove substantially all the limescale deposited on the lower surface, at least in correspondence with the zone affected by the travel of the mechanical removal means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of some embodiments, given as a non-restrictive example with reference to the attached drawings wherein:

fig. 1 is an exploded three-dimensional view of an iron according to the present invention;
fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the iron of fig. 1 disposed in a horizontal position with the limescale removal device in a first operating position;
fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the iron of fig. 1 disposed in a vertical rest position with the limescale removal device in a second operating position.

We must clarify that in the present description and in the claims the terms upper, lower, front and rear, with their declinations, have the sole function of better illustrating the present invention with reference to the drawings and must not be in any way used to limit the scope of the invention itself, or the field of protection defined by the claims.
Furthermore, the people of skill in the art will recognize that certain sizes or characteristics in the drawings may have been enlarged, deformed, or shown in an unconventional or non-proportional way in order to provide a version of the present invention that is easier to understand.
When sizes and/or values are specified in the following description, the sizes and/or values are provided for illustrative purposes only and must not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention, unless such sizes and/or values are present in the attached claims.
To facilitate comprehension, the same reference numbers have been used, where possible, to identify identical common elements in the drawings, even of different embodiments. It is understood that elements and characteristics of one embodiment can be conveniently combined or incorporated into other embodiments without further clarifications.

DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

With reference to figs. 1-3, an iron 10 according to some embodiments of the present invention comprises a plate unit 11 connected, during use, to a water tank (not shown), a containing body 12, and an ironing soleplate 13, of a substantially known type, provided with through holes 14 and attached to the lower part of the plate unit 11.
The iron 10 is provided with a support surface 16 in correspondence with its rear part (on the right in fig. 2) on which it can be placed resting vertically on a plane P.
The plate unit 11 comprises an evaporation chamber 21 (figs. 2 and 3) with a rectilinear conformation that extends along a longitudinal axis X, with a constant, or not constant, cross-section, in which the water fed from the tank is transformed into steam when it comes into contact with a surface of the evaporation chamber 21heated by heating elements 15 of a known type.
The evaporation chamber 21 has a front wall 24, an upper aperture 25 provided on its upper surface 23 through which the water fed from the tank can selectively enter the evaporation chamber 21.
The evaporation chamber 21 is also provided with a rear aperture 26, that is, disposed on the rear part of the iron 10.
The evaporation chamber 21 is also provided with one or more apertures 27 to convey the steam generated in the evaporation chamber 21 from the latter to the through holes 14 of the ironing soleplate 13 (fig. 2).
According to some embodiments, the evaporation chamber 21 has a substantially square or rectangular cross-section, with possible beveled edges. At least the lower surface 22 of the evaporation chamber 21 is flat in order to allow an effective removal of the limescale therefrom, as will be explained below.
According to one aspect of the present invention, the iron 10 comprises a limescale removal device 30 disposed inside the evaporation chamber 21 and an automatic drive device 40, associated with the removal device 30, configured to move the latter along the longitudinal axis X of the evaporation chamber 21 at least when the iron 10 is placed in the rest position on the surface 16.
The automatic drive device 40 is configured to automatically move the removal device 30 inside the evaporation chamber 21 at least between a first and a second operating position in relation to the resting position of the iron 10.
The removal device 30 is provided, on a first end thereof, with mechanical limescale removal means 31 configured to contact the lower surface 22 and remove the limescale deposited thereon.
According to some embodiments, the mechanical removal means 31 comprise at least one scraping, or removal, element 32, for example substantially having the shape of a spatula with a width correlated to the width of the evaporation chamber 21 in correspondence with its lower surface 22, or possibly slightly smaller than it.
The scraping element 32 is configured to permanently contact the lower surface 22, in particular during its movement along the longitudinal axis X.
Advantageously, the scraping element 32, when the removal device 30 is in its first operating position, is disposed on one side of the upper aperture 25, while when the removal device 30 is in the second operating position it is disposed on the opposite side of the upper aperture 25. In this way, during the translation toward the second operating position, the scraping element 32 can remove any limescale formed on the lower surface 22 in correspondence with the aperture 25 from which the water falls.
According to some embodiments, in the second operating position the scraping element 32 can be located substantially in contact with the front wall 24. In this way, it is possible to remove the limescale even in the proximity of the most internal zone of the evaporation chamber 21.
According to some embodiments, in correspondence with the rear aperture 26 there is disposed a tubular support element 33, which functions as a guide, mounted on the plate unit 11 and having a through longitudinal central cavity 34, suitable to cooperate with a rear part 35 of the removal device 30.
The removal device 30 comprises a rear part 35, having at least one portion with a section mating with that of the central cavity 34 of the tubular support element 33, and a front part 36 comprising an oblong member 37 disposed cantilevered with respect to the rear part 35.
The mechanical removal means 31, or at least one scraping element 32, can be disposed in correspondence with the free end of the oblong member 37.
According to some embodiments, the scraping element 32 can be inclined in such a way as to form a certain angle α with respect to the lower surface 22, so as to impart a certain force to the scraping element 32, such force being able to improve the scraping and limescale removal effects when the removal device 30 is displaced from the first to the second operating position, or vice versa.
According to the embodiments described heretofore, the angle α can be advantageously comprised between a few degrees and 90°.
According to some variants, not shown in the drawings, the oblong member 37 is provided with two or more scraping elements 32, possibly disposed distanced from each other along the longitudinal axis X.
According to some embodiments, the cross-section of the oblong member 37 is much smaller than the cross-section of the evaporation chamber 21, and its lateral walls are sufficiently distant from the analogous lateral walls of the evaporation chamber 21, including the lower 22 and upper surfaces 23.
According to some embodiments, the ratio between the section of the oblong member 39 and the section of the evaporation chamber is at least 1:2, and preferably smaller.
For example, if the section of the evaporation chamber 21 is of the order of one or several cm², the section of the oblong member 37 can be a few mm².
In the embodiments shown here, the oblong member 37 comprises a sheet having a substantially flat rectangular cross-section, with a thickness much smaller than both its length as well as its width.
The oblong member 37 can have a width comprised between about 0.2 and 0.5 times the width of the evaporation chamber 21, while its thickness can be comprised between 0.1 and 0.2 times a height of the evaporation chamber 21.
The sheet can be provided with lateral fins 38 which give it a desired rigidity, at least to a proximal zone thereof, that is, a zone close to the rear part 35, keeping its distal zone more flexible.
According to one variant, not shown in the drawings, the oblong member 37 can comprise, or consist of, a rod with a cylindrical, tubular or polygonal section, for example square, pentagonal or hexagonal.
In other embodiments, not shown in the drawings, the at least one scraping element 32 can have other shapes, for example arched, provided that the part intended to touch the lower surface 22 is suitable to perform an effective removal of the limescale that has formed thereon.
According to other embodiments, the scraping element 32 can be provided with a through aperture 39, sufficiently wide, to allow the water that enters the evaporation chamber 21 through the upper aperture 25 to contact the lower surface 22, even when the removal device 31 is at least partly displaced toward the second operating position.
The automatic drive device 40 comprises an actuation member 41, integral with the rear part 35 of the removal device 30, which in the first operating position is disposed protruding with respect to the rear support surface 16 (fig. 2), and in the second operating position it is disposed substantially flush with the support surface 16 (fig. 3).
Since the removal device 30 and the actuation member 41 are integral with each other, the displacement of the actuation member 41 involves a displacement of a correlated length of the mechanical removal means 31 inside the evaporation chamber 21.
The automatic drive device 40 comprises elastic return means 42 configured to exert an axial thrust on the removal device 30 toward the rear part of the iron 10 in the direction indicated by the arrow F1 in fig. 2, in order to keep the removal device 30 in the first operating position, or to return it to the first operating position, when no stress is exerted on the actuation member 41.
The elastic return means 42 can comprise a helical spring 43.
Furthermore, the automatic drive device 40 comprises an internal sleeve 44 which functions as a guide, with a through longitudinal central cavity 45, suitable to cooperate with at least one portion of the rear part 35 of the removal device 30.
The internal sleeve 44 can comprise, on one end thereof, a protruding edge 48 suitable to be positioned abutting against an edge of the tubular support element 33.
The length of the internal sleeve 44 can be substantially the same as the length of the travel of the removal device 30 between the first and second operating positions.
According to some embodiments, the rear part 35 comprises a first sealing portion 51, suitable to slide in the central cavity 45 and produce a seal with it, and a second sealing portion 52, having a larger cross-section than the first sealing portion 51, which is positioned between the latter and the actuation member 41.
In correspondence with the first 51 and the second sealing portion 52, respective packings can be provided which are suitable to guarantee a hermetically sealed closure of the evaporation chamber 21.
According to other embodiments, the automatic drive device 40 can also comprise an external sleeve 46 provided with a through longitudinal central cavity 47, the external sleeve 46 being positioned, during use, coaxial to the internal sleeve 44.
The section of the central cavity 47 preferably has a shape and sizes mating with those of the second sealing portion 52, thus sliding inside it, producing a seal.
Between the external sleeve 46 and the internal sleeve 44 there is an annular seating 49 suitable to house the helical spring 43 in such a way that a first end of the helical spring 43 is positioned in contact with the protruding edge 48, and the opposite end is positioned in contact with the second sealing portion 52.
According to other embodiments, the external sleeve 46 can be advantageously connected to the tubular support body 33 by means of known removable means. This allows to easily remove the removal device 30 from the evaporation chamber 21, in order to remove the limescale particles accumulated therein.
The external sleeve 46 and the actuation member 41 can be provided with respective guide members 53, 54 to keep the removal device 30 correctly aligned during its movement between the first and second operating positions, or vice versa.
The guide members can consist of a through slit 53 provided on the external sleeve 46 in a longitudinal direction, and a mating protruding rib 54 provided on the drive member 41.
The operation of the removal device 30 and of the automatic drive device 40 described heretofore is as follows.
When the iron 10 is in use, or is placed resting on the ironing soleplate 13, the return means 42 are extended and thrust the second sealing portion 52 toward the rear part of the iron 10, keeping the removal device 30 in the first operating position, in which the actuation member 41 protrudes outward with respect to the rear support surface 16 (fig. 2).
When the iron 10 is positioned with the support surface 16 resting on a plane P, the actuation member 41 is automatically thrust toward the inside of the iron 10 due to the weight force, and the second sealing portion 52 compresses the return means 42, consequently moving the removal device 30 toward the second operating position, in the direction indicated by the arrow F2 in fig. 3.
During the displacement between the two operating positions, the mechanical removal means 31 scrape the lower surface 22 with which they are in contact, eliminating any limescale encrustations.
When the iron 10 is raised from the vertical rest position, and the support surface 16 moves away from the plane P, the return means 42 return to their extended condition and return the removal device 30 to the first operating position.
It is clear that the automatic drive device 40, or the actuation member 41, could also be driven manually by a user. However, the fact that the automatic drive device 40 moves the removal device 30, whenever the iron 10 is positioned in the vertical rest position, is extremely advantageous to effectively prevent the accumulation and sedimentation of limescale, at least in correspondence with the zone where the water falls, without any burden for the user.
It is clear that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the iron 10 as described heretofore, without departing from the field and scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.
It is also clear that, although the present invention has been described with reference to some specific examples, a person of skill in the art shall certainly be able to achieve many other equivalent forms of iron, all coming within the field and scope of the present invention.
In the following claims, the sole purpose of the references in brackets is to facilitate reading and they must not be considered as restrictive factors with regard to the field of protection defined by the claims.

Claims

Iron (10) provided with a limescale removal device (30) comprising mechanical limescale removal means (31), characterized in that an automatic drive device (40) is associated with said removal device (30) and is configured to move it - if the iron (10) is, or not, in its resting position on a rear support surface (16) thereof - along a longitudinal axis (X) between at least a first and a second operating position.
Iron (10) as in claim 1, characterized in that said automatic drive device (40) comprises an actuation member (41) located in correspondence with an end of the removal device (30) opposite said mechanical removal means (31), said actuation member (41) being, with respect to said rear support surface (16), protruding in said first operating position and flush in said second operating position.
Iron (10) as in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said automatic drive device (40) comprises elastic return means (42) configured to exert an axial thrust on said actuation member (41) in order to keep said removal device (30) in said first operating position, or to return it to said first operating position.
Iron (10) as in claim 3, characterized in that said automatic drive device (40) comprises an internal sleeve (44) provided with a through longitudinal central cavity (45) and an external sleeve (46) provided with a through longitudinal central cavity (47), positioned, during use, coaxial to said internal sleeve (44) and defining with it an annular seating (49) suitable to house said return means (42).
Iron (10) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that said removal device (30) comprises a rear part (35) integral with said actuation member (41) and a front part (36) comprising an oblong member (37) disposed cantilevered with respect to said rear part (35).
Iron (10) as in claims 4 and 5, characterized in that said rear part (35) comprises a first sealing portion (51), configured to slide in said central cavity (45) producing a seal with it, and a second sealing portion (52), suitable to slide in said central cavity (47) producing a seal with it.
Iron (10) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that it comprises an evaporation chamber (21) comprising an upper aperture (25) to selectively receive the water from a tank and said mechanical removal means (31) are positioned respectively on opposite sides with respect to said upper aperture (25) in said first and in said second operating position.
Iron (10) as in claims 5 and 7 or 6 and 7, characterized in that said oblong member (37) has a cross-section smaller than the cross-section of said evaporation chamber (21) and is provided, on a terminal end thereof, with said mechanical removal means (31).
Iron (10) as in any of the previous claims 7 or 8, characterized in that said evaporation chamber (21) is closed at the front by a front wall (24) and said mechanical removal means (31) are disposed substantially in contact with it in said second operating position.
Iron (10) as in any of the previous claims from 7 to 9, characterized in that said mechanical removal means (31) comprise at least one scraping element (32) substantially having the shape of a spatula having a width correlated to the width of said evaporation chamber (21) in correspondence with a lower surface (22) thereof, or slightly smaller than it.