WO2012065535A1

WO2012065535A1 - Water supply device of dishwasher and dishwasher comprising the same

Info

Publication number: WO2012065535A1
Application number: PCT/CN2011/082173
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jian Sun; Mingwei Li; Juan Zhang; Qiang Guo
Original assignee: Byd Company Limited
Priority date: 2010-11-18
Filing date: 2011-11-14
Publication date: 2012-05-24
Also published as: CN102462473A; CN102462473B

Abstract

A water supply device of a dishwasher and a dishwasher comprising the same may be provided. The water supply device may comprise: a soft water container (b) defining a softener cavity for positioning a softener therein, the softener cavity having a first water inlet (2), a first water outlet (6) for outputting softened water and a softener processing water outlet; a regenerating container (a) defining a regenerating cavity for positioning a regenerating agent therein, the regenerating cavity having a second water inlet (3) and a second water outlet in communication with the softener cavity; a hard water container (c) defining a hard water cavity for positioning a hardener therein, the harder cavity having a third water inlet (9), a third water outlet (7) and a softener processing water inlet in communication with the softener processing water outlet; a first valve (10-1) disposed between the second water outlet and the softener cavity; and a second valve (10-2) disposed between the softener processing water inlet of the hard water cavity and the softener processing water outlet of the softener cavity.

Description

WATER SUPPLY DEVICE OF DISHWASHER AND DISHWASHER

COMPRISING THE SAME

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to and benefits of Chinese Patent Application Serial No. 201010554000.8, filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of P. R. China on November 18, 2010, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a water supply device, more particularly to a water supply device of a dishwasher and a dishwasher comprising the same.

BACKGROUND

Recently, a dishwasher becomes more and more popular due to convenient use and powerful cleaning capacity thereof.

The function of the conventional water supply device of dishwasher is realized by converting tap water into soft water and then supplying soft water to a cleaning cavity of the dishwasher. Such conventional water supply device of the dishwasher may have a very simple function and may only convert hard water into soft water, and the hard water generated when the softener is regenerated may not be recycled, and thus the water resource may be wasted to a great extent.

In addition, the soft water generated by such conventional water supply device of the dishwasher may be mainly used for cleaning starch and oil dirt when the soft water is warmed up and mixed with a washing agent or detergent. However, protein dirt such as egg protein dirt may be hard to clean when they are warmed up and coagulated.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to solve at least one of the problems existing in the prior art. Accordingly, a water supply device of a dishwasher and dishwasher comprising the same may be provided, in which the water supply device of the dishwasher may not only convert hard water into soft water but also regenerate a softener with a regenerating agent in the regenerating cavity. Furthermore, hard water generated when the softener is regenerated may also be used to clean dishes, thus reducing the cost and saving the water resources.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a water supply device of a dishwasher may be provided. The water supply device may comprise: a soft water container defining a softener cavity for positioning a softener therein, the softener cavity having a first water inlet, a first water outlet for outputting softened water and a softener processing water outlet; a regenerating container defining a regenerating cavity for positioning a regenerating agent therein, the regenerating cavity having a second water inlet and a second water outlet communicated with the softener cavity; a hard water container defining a hard water cavity for positioning a hardener therein, the hard water cavity having a third water inlet, a third water outlet and a softener processing water inlet communicated with the softener processing water outlet; a first valve disposed between the second water outlet and the softener cavity; and a second valve disposed between the softener processing water inlet of the hard water cavity and the softener water processing outlet of the softener cavity.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a dishwasher comprising the water supply device according to an aspect of the present disclosure may be provided.

With the water supply device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, not only may hard water be converted into soft water by the hard water container, but also the softener may be regenerated with the regenerating agent in the regenerating cavity. Furthermore, hard water generated when the softener is regenerated may also be used to clean dishes, thus reducing the cost and saving the water resources. Furthermore, protein dirt such as egg protein dirt etc. may be cleaned by hard water generated by using the water supply device.

Additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of present disclosure will be given in part in the following descriptions, become apparent in part from the following descriptions, or be learned from the practice of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a water supply device of a dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; Fig. 2 is another perspective view of a water supply device of a dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

Fig. 3 is a top view of a water supply device of a dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will be made in detail to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments described herein with reference to drawings are explanatory, illustrative, and used to generally understand the present disclosure. The embodiments shall not be construed to limit the present disclosure. The same or similar elements and the elements having same or similar functions are denoted by like reference numerals throughout the descriptions.

In the description, relative terms such as "longitudinal", "lateral", "front", "rear", "right", "left", "lower", "upper", "horizontal", "vertical", "above", "below", "up", "top", "bottom" as well as derivative thereof (e.g., "horizontally", "downwardly", "upwardly", etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawings under discussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description and do not require that the present disclosure be constructed or operated in a particular orientation.

In the description, terms relating to attachments, coupling and the like, such as "communicated", refer to a relationship in which structures or configurations are secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectly through intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigid attachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise. In addition, in the description, the terms such as "inlet" and "outlet" may be construed in a broad sense, such as an opening formed in a container or a pipe having an opening leading out of a container for achieving equivalent functions of fluid communication.

In the following, a water supply device of a dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to Figs. 1-3.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure and as shown in Fig.l, the water supply device comprises a soft water container b, a regenerating container a, a hard water container c, a first valve 10-1, and a second valve 10-2.

Specifically, the soft water container b defines a softener cavity (not shown) for positioning a softener therein, and the softener cavity has a first water inlet 2 for intaking water, a first water outlet 6 for outputting softened water and a softener processing water outlet.

The regenerating container a defines a regenerating cavity (not shown) for positioning a regenerating agent therein, and the regenerating cavity has a second water inlet 3 and a second water outlet (not shown) communicated with the softener cavity, and thus the regenerating solution in the regenerating cavity may be injected into the softener cavity to perform regenerating process to the softener.

The hard water container c defines a hard water cavity (not shown) for positioning a hardener therein, and the hard water cavity may have a third water inlet 9, a third water outlet 7 and an softener processing water inlet communicated with the softener processing water outlet.

The first valve 10-1 is disposed between the second water outlet and the softener cavity; and the second valve 10-2 is disposed between the softener processing water inlet of the hard water cavity and the softener water processing outlet of the softener cavity.

With the water supply device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, not only may hard water be converted into soft water by the hard water container, but also the softener may be regenerated with the regenerating agent in the regenerating cavity. Furthermore, hard water generated when the softener is regenerated may also be used to clean dishes, thus reducing the cost and saving the water resources. Furthermore, protein dirt such as egg protein dirt may be cleaned by hard water generated by using the water supply device.

The working principal of the water supply device will be described in detail as follows.

Water to be treated, such as tap water etc., flows into the soft water container b through the first water inlet 2 and may be treated with the softener positioned in the softener cavity to be converted into soft water, and then the soft water may be provided to a dishwasher through the first water outlet 6 for cleaning dishes. The first valve 10-1 and the second valve 10-2 may be closed during the above mentioned process.

When the softener in the softener cavity is used for a period of time and needs to be regenerated, water is provided to the regenerating container a through the second water inlet 3 so as to generate the regenerating solution, and then the first valve 10-1 disposed between the second water outlet and the softener cavity is opened (at this time, the second valve 10-2 is still closed) to make the regenerating solution flow into the softener cavity through the second water outlet, thus regenerating the softener in the softener cavity with the regenerating solution. When the softener regenerating process is finished, the first valve 10-1 is closed and the second valve 10-2 is opened so that the hard water produced during the softener regenerating process may flow into the hard water cavity through the softener processing water inlet, and thus the hard water generated during the softener regenerating process may be reused accordingly.

Moreover, the hard water may be produced from the tap water flowing into the hard water cavity through the third water inlet 9 and being converted into the hard water with the hardener positioned in the hard water cavity. The hard water may be provided to the dishwasher through the third water outlet 7 and used to clean the protein dirt. The first valve 10-1 and the second valve 10-2 may be closed during the above process.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the water supply device further comprises a third valve 10-3 and a fourth valve 10-4. The third valve 10-3 may be disposed at the first water outlet 6, and the fourth valve 10-4 may be disposed at the third water outlet 7, and the third water outlet 7 may be communicated with the first water outlet 6 so that the dishwasher have a compact structure. Therefore, the hard water or soft water may be provided to the washing device of the dishwasher through a single water outlet formed after the first water outlet 6 is communicated with the third water outlet 7. Specifically, when the soft water needs to be provided, the fourth valve 10-4 is closed and the third valve 10-3 is opened, and thus the soft water is provided to the washing device of the dishwasher through the first water outlet 6; and when the hard water needs to be provided, the third valve 10-3 is closed and the fourth valve 10-4 is opened, and thus the hard water is provided to the washing device of the dishwasher through the third water outlet 7. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, each of the fourth valve 10-4, the third valve 10-3, the second valve 10-2 and the first valve 10-1 may be an electromagnetic valve respectively. Optionally, the second valve 10-2 may be a unidirectional electromagnetic valve so as to ensure that soft water generated in the softener cavity may flow into the hard water cavity but hard water generated in the hard water cavity may not flow into the softener cavity.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the softener may be a cation exchange resin, the regenerating agent may be a table salt, and the hardener may be a soluble calcium salt, or a soluble magnesium salt or a mixture thereof. Specifically, the cation exchange resin may be used to absorb calcium and magnesium ions in water to be treated such as tap water. Such absorption process may be realized by ion exchange to convert water to be treated into the soft water. When the cation exchange resin is used for a period of time and the absorbed calcium and magnesium ions approach saturation, the saturated salt solution may be used as the regenerating agent to exchange cations contained in the cation exchange resin. Therefore, the calcium and magnesium ions contained in the cation exchange resin may be removed so as to regenerate the cation exchange resin. When the hard water needs to be provided, except that hard water generated during the softener regenerating process may be used, hard water may also be provided by making tap water flow into the hard water cavity through the third water inlet 9 and converting tap water into the hard water with the hardener positioned in the hard water cavity.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the water supply device may also comprise a solution concentration detector 14 for detecting a concentration of the regenerating solution in the regenerating cavity, and the solution concentration detector 14 may be a float concentration detector. Particularly, the solution concentration detector 14 may comprise a first float having a density between those of water and a saturated regenerating solution, a first float receiving chamber communicated with the regenerating cavity through a first slot, a first reed switch assembly connected with the first float for switching on or off based on the floating state of the first float, and a first indicator connected with the first reed switch assembly for indicating the solution concentration of the regenerating water. Hereinafter, the working principle of the solution concentration detector 14 will be described by taking table salt as an example of the regenerating agent. When there is still table salt left in the regenerating cavity, the regenerating solution is saturated salt solution, the buoyant force of the first float is greater than its gravity, the first float floats upwards, and thus the first indicator connected with the first reed switch assembly does not raise a signal; and when the concentration of the regenerating solution is low due to lacking of table salt, the buoyant force of the first float is smaller than its gravity, the first float sinks accordingly and thus the first reed switch assembly connected with the first float is switched on and the first indicator connected with the first reed switch assembly raises a signal of adding table salt. At this time, a lid 1 of the regenerating container needs to be opened and table salt needs to be added into the regenerating cavity to ensure that the regenerating solution is always in its saturation status.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the water supply device may also comprise a hard water concentration detector 12 for detecting a concentration of the hard water in the hard water cavity, and the hard water concentration detector 12 may be a float concentration detector. In one embodiment, the hard water concentration detector 12 may comprise a second float having a density between water and a saturated hard water solution, a second float receiving chamber communicated with the hard water cavity through, for example, a second slot, a second reed switch assembly connected with the second float for switching on or off based on the floating state of the second float, and a second indicator connected with the second reed switch assembly for indicating the solution concentration of the hard water. Hereinafter, the working principle of the hard water concentration detector 12 will be described with the soluble calcium salt as an example of the hardener. When there is the soluble calcium salt in solid state left in the hard water cavity, the solution in the hard water cavity is a saturated hard water solution, the buoyant force of the second float is greater than its gravity, the second float floats upwards, and thus the second indicator connected with the second reed switch assembly does not raise a signal; and when the concentration of the hard water solution is low due to lacking of the calcium salt, the buoyant force of the second float becomes smaller than the gravity thereof, the second float may sink, and thus the second reed switch assembly connected with the second float is switched on and the second indicator connected with the second reed switch raises a signal of adding the calcium salt. At this time, a lid 4 of the hard water container needs to be opened and the calcium salt needs to be added into the hard water cavity to ensure that the concentration of hard water in the hard water cavity is always in the saturated state.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the soft water container b, the regenerating container a and the hard water container c may be integrally formed to have a compact structure.

The dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below.

The dishwasher according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may comprise the water supply device according to any one of the above embodiments of the present disclosure. Other elements or members of the dishwasher are known to those skilled in the art, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein for clarity.

Reference throughout this specification to "an embodiment", "some embodiments", "one embodiment", "an example", "a specific examples", or "some examples" means that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the disclosure. Thus, the appearances of the phrases such as "in some embodiments", "in one embodiment", "in an embodiment", "an example", "a specific examples", or "some examples" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment or example of the disclosure. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

Although explanatory embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes, alternatives, and modifications may be made in the embodiments without departing from spirit and principles of the disclosure. Such changes, alternatives, and modifications all fall into the scope of the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A water supply device of a dishwasher, comprising:

a soft water container defining a softener cavity for positioning a softener therein, the softener cavity having a first water inlet, a first water outlet for outputting softened water and a softener processing water outlet;

a regenerating container defining a regenerating cavity for positioning a regenerating agent therein, the regenerating cavity having a second water inlet and a second water outlet communicated with the softener cavity;

a hard water container defining a hard water cavity for positioning a hardener therein, the hard water cavity having a third water inlet, a third water outlet and a softener processing water inlet communicated with the softener processing water outlet;

a first valve disposed between the second water outlet and the softener cavity; and

a second valve disposed between the softener processing water inlet of the hard water cavity and the softener water processing outlet of the softener cavity.

2. The water supply device of claim 1, further comprising:

a third valve disposed at the first water outlet; and

a fourth valve disposed at the third water outlet; wherein

the third water outlet is communicated with the first water outlet.

3. The water supply device of claim 1, wherein the softener is a cation exchange resin, the regenerating agent is table salt, and the hardener is a soluble calcium salt, a soluble magnesium salt or a mixture thereof.

4. The water supply device of claim 1, further comprising:

a solution concentration detector for detecting a concentration of the regenerating solution in the regenerating cavity.

5. The water supply device of claim 4, wherein the solution concentration detector is a float concentration detector.

6. The water supply device of claim 5, wherein the solution concentration detector comprises: a first float having a density between water and a saturated regenerating solution;

a first float receiving chamber communicated with the regenerating cavity;

a first reed switch assembly connected with the first float for switching on or off based on the floating state of the first float; and

a first indicator connected with the first reed switch assembly for indicating the solution concentration of the regenerating water.

7. The water supply device of claim 1, further comprising:

a hard water concentration detector for detecting a concentration of the hard water in the hard water cavity.

8. The water supply device of claim 7, wherein the hard water concentration detector is a float concentration detector.

9. The water supply device of claim 8, wherein the hard water concentration detector comprises:

a second float having a density between water and a saturated hard water solution;

a second float receiving chamber communicated with the hard water cavity;

a second reed switch assembly connected with the second float for switching on or off based on the floating state of the second float; and

a second indicator connected with the second reed switch assembly for indicating the solution concentration of the hard water.

10. The water supply device of claim 1, wherein the soft water container, the regenerating container and the hard water container are integrally formed.

11. A dishwasher comprising a water supply device of any one of claims 1-10.