EP4074881A1 - Wäschebehandlungsgerät mit wasserenthärtungssystem - Google Patents

Wäschebehandlungsgerät mit wasserenthärtungssystem Download PDF

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Publication number: EP4074881A1
Authority: EP; European Patent Office
Prior art keywords: water; softening agent; water softening; agent container; container
Prior art date: 2021-04-15
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.): Granted

Application number

EP21168654.8A

Other languages

English (en)

French (fr)

Other versions

EP4074881B1 (de

Inventor

Stefano De Paoli

Maurizio Del Pos

Andrea Zattin

Marcin Lorenc

Carlo Antonio LEONE

Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)

Electrolux Appliances AB

Original Assignee

Electrolux Appliances AB

Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)

2021-04-15

Filing date

2021-04-15

Publication date

2022-10-19

2021-04-15 Application filed by Electrolux Appliances AB filed Critical Electrolux Appliances AB

2021-04-15 Priority to EP21168654.8A priority Critical patent/EP4074881B1/de

2022-10-19 Publication of EP4074881A1 publication Critical patent/EP4074881A1/de

2024-12-18 Application granted granted Critical

2024-12-18 Publication of EP4074881B1 publication Critical patent/EP4074881B1/de

Status Active legal-status Critical Current

2041-04-15 Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

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Classifications

- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
- D06F39/00—Details of washing machines not specific to a single type of machines covered by groups D06F9/00 - D06F27/00
- D06F39/007—Arrangements of water softeners

Definitions

the present invention generally relates to the field of laundry treatment appliances (hereinafter, concisely, “laundry appliances”), and particularly to laundry appliances for treating, e.g . washing, laundry, such as laundry washing appliances and laundry washing appliances also implementing laundry drying functions (also referred to as washers/dryers).
laundry appliances for treating, e.g . washing, laundry, such as laundry washing appliances and laundry washing appliances also implementing laundry drying functions (also referred to as washers/dryers).
Laundry appliances are configured to treat laundry located in a (e.g., rotatable) drum by providing process water in a washing tub housing the rotatable drum.
process water it is generally intended plain water or water mixed with proper (e.g ., liquid and powder) treatment agents, including, but not limited to, washing detergents, rinsing detergents, bleaches and softeners detergents, softeners, bleaches, dyes.
proper e.g ., liquid and powder
treatment agents including, but not limited to, washing detergents, rinsing detergents, bleaches and softeners detergents, softeners, bleaches, dyes.
the hardness of the water may negatively affect the performance of a laundry appliance. Indeed, laundry treated using excessively hard water may require higher temperatures, and even if high temperatures are used, the result of the laundry treatment can be not satisfactory. Moreover, laundry treated using hard water may become stiff, subjected to premature tear and wear, and cause skin irritation. In addition, the parts of the laundry appliance that are in direct contact with water (e.g., ducts, tanks, valves, heater resistors) may become encrusted with limestone, impairing the correct operation of the laundry appliance.
water e.g., ducts, tanks, valves, heater resistors
a water softening system comprises a container containing a water softening agent (e.g., a ion-exchange resin) capable of reducing hardness of water by promoting exchange of the minerals dissolved in water causing hardness (e.g ., calcium and magnesium) for a soft mineral that does not build up on surfaces, such as sodium.
a water softening agent e.g., a ion-exchange resin
the water softening agent After several uses, the water softening agent get exhausted, strongly reducing the water softening performances.
the water softening system further comprises a (refillable) container for storing a regenerating agent, usually salt, to be used for regenerating the exhausted softening agent during a water softening agent regeneration procedure.
the water softening system is provided at the drawer of the laundry appliance where compartments for containing the treatment agents are located, for example directly integrated in the drawer itself and/or in a drawer seat of the laundry appliance for slidably housing the drawer.
EP0190675 discloses a washing machine having a detergent supply box and a water softening device.
the water softening device comprises a softening part, a replenishable salt container and a water chamber, which is to be filled with fresh water and has a means for preventing back-flow incorporated therein, which means is connected upstream of the softening part.
the softening part and the salt container are disposed in a lower region of the machine and are connected to the water chamber, situated thereabove, by means of pipes in that the soft water outlet of the softening part is connected to the detergent supply box, situated in an upper portion of the machine, by means of a pipe, and in that a branch is fitted in this connection pipe and a pipe extends from said branch to the discharge system of the washing machine.
a drawback affecting the solution in which the water softening system is provided at the drawer of the laundry appliance is the scarce space available for the water softening agent container and the salt container. Because of that, a user of the laundry appliance is disadvantageously forced to refill the salt container with new salt with a relatively high frequency.
the solution provided in EP1960675 provides that fresh water provided from an external water supply is stored in a water chamber before being supplied to the softening part for reducing the hardness thereof. Directly storing - possibly hard - fresh water coming from an external water supply in a water chamber is not efficient because it may cause the formation of limestone on the walls of the water chamber, capable of impairing the correct operation of the laundry appliance.
the Applicant has devised a solution for implementing a water softening system for a laundry appliance that is not affected by the abovementioned drawbacks.
an aspect of the present invention relates to a laundry treatment appliance comprising:
the process water fed into the washing tub used for treating laundry advantageously comprises soft water.
the proposed laundry treatment appliance comprises a water softening system arranged in such a way that water is softened just after it reaches the laundry treatment appliance through the water inlet. Indeed, since the water tank is fluidly coupled downstream the water softening agent container, the water softening agent container only stores soft water.
the peculiar arrangement of the water softening agent container and of the water tank with respect to each other and also with respect to the water inlet are such to reduce the number of components of the laundry treatment appliance that can be in contact with hard water. In this way, formation of limestone on laundry appliance components (such as on the walls of the water tank) that can potentially impair the correct operation of the laundry appliance are avoided or at least strongly reduced.
the laundry treatment appliance further comprises a container for storing a regenerating agent, preferably salt.
the salt container is configured to be selectively in fluid communication with a second output of the water tank for receiving soft water.
the water softening agent container, the water tank and/or the salt container are located on or close to a bottom of the laundry treatment appliance.
the water softening agent container is located on the bottom at a rear portion of the laundry treatment appliance, the salt container is located on the bottom at a front portion of the laundry treatment appliance, and the water tank is located above the water softening agent container.
said container for storing salt comprises an output fluidly connected to a second input of the water softening agent container to provide brine to the water softening agent container during a water softening agent regeneration procedure for regenerating said water softening agent.
said brine comprises soft water received from the soft water tank mixed with stored salt.
the water softening agent container is configured to be selectively in fluid communication with a drain of the laundry treatment appliance for allowing brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration contained in the water softening agent container to be discharged into the drain.
the brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration, before reaching the drain can be advantageously filtered by a drain filter element located upstream the drain, so that anti-pollution standards can be respected.
the water softening system further comprises a soft water tank valve at the second output of the soft water tank configured to be selectively opened during said water softening agent regeneration procedure for selectively causing soft water stored in the soft water tank flow into the salt container thus generating said brine.
the water softening system further comprises a pump device configured to be selectively activated during said water softening agent regeneration procedure for selectively causing brine generated in said salt container be pumped in the water softening agent container through the second input thereof.
the water softening system further comprises a water softening agent container valve arranged at the output of the water softening agent container.
said water softening agent container valve is configured to be switched between a first operating mode and a second operating mode.
the output of the water softening agent container is in fluid communication with the input of the water tank.
the output of the water softening agent container is in fluid communication with said drain of the laundry treatment appliance for allowing brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration in the water softening agent container reach said laundry treatment appliance drain.
the output of the water softening agent container is in fluid communication with said drain of the laundry treatment appliance through the washing tub for allowing brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration in the water softening agent container reach said laundry treatment appliance drain.
the water softening agent container valve is configured to be switched in the second operating mode during or after said water softening agent regeneration procedure.
said water softening agent container valve is further configured to be switched in a third operating mode in which fluid communication between the output of the water softening agent container and the input of the water tank, and fluid communication between the output of the water softening agent container and the drain of the laundry treatment appliance are prevented.
the laundry treatment appliance further comprises a first duct for allowing fluid communication between the water softening agent container and the drain when the water softening agent container valve is in the second operating mode.
said water tank is formed in a single piece with said first duct.
the laundry treatment appliance further comprises a second duct for allowing fluid communication between the water inlet and the first input of the water softening agent container.
said water tank is formed in a single piece with said first duct and with said second duct.
said pump device is configured to be temporally deactivated for a predetermined time for allowing brine contained in the water softening agent container to regenerate said water softening agent.
the pump device is configured to be reactivated once said water softening agent container valve is in the second operating mode to pump brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration in the water softening agent container towards said laundry treatment appliance drain.
the salt container comprises an air vent duct configured to allow air inside the salt container exit the salt container by a pressure of soft water coming into the salt container from the water tank.
the salt container can be filled with soft water in an efficient way, avoiding or at least strongly reducing the formation of undesired air bubbles trapped inside the salt container.
said water softening agent comprises an ion exchange resin.
said salt container is a refillable salt container adapted to be refilled with amounts of salt.
said process water deliver apparatus comprises at least one compartment adapted to contain a treatment agent for laundry treatment, and is configured to mix soft water supplied by said soft water tank with said treatment agent.
the process water fed into the washing tub used for treating laundry may advantageously comprise soft water mixed with treatment agent.
said laundry treatment appliance is a laundry washing machine or a laundry washing and drying machine.
Another aspect of the present invention relates to a method for operating a laundry treatment appliance.
the method comprises:
the method further comprises, during a water softening agent regeneration procedure for regenerating said water softening agent:
Figure 1 is a, partially transparent, side view of a laundry appliance 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
the laundry appliance 100 is a washing machine.
a washing machine this should not to be construed as a limitation; indeed, the present invention applies to other types of laundry appliances (for example combined washers/dryers, i.e. washing machines also having laundry drying functions).
the laundry appliance 100 comprises a (e.g., parallepiped-shaped) cabinet 105, which preferably accommodates a washing tub 110.
the washing tub 110 houses a rotatable drum (not shown in the figures) adapted to receive laundry to be treated (e.g., to be washed).
a cabinet front surface has a loading opening 115 providing an access to the drum for loading/unloading the laundry, a door 120 (shown in a closed position in Figure 1 ) being provided for sealable closing the loading opening 115 during the operation of the laundry appliance 100.
the laundry appliance 100 comprises a water inlet 122 - for example located on a top portion of a back side of the cabinet 105 - configured to receive water from an external water supply.
the laundry appliance 100 comprises an apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
the apparatus 125 for supplying process water comprises a drawer 130 having compartments (not visible in Figure 1 ) for containing one or more treatment agents - such as liquid and powder treatment agents including, but not limited to, washing detergents, rinsing detergents, bleaches and softeners -, a water distribution system 132 for supplying water to the drawer 130 in order to obtain the process water, and a process water outlet 134 for providing the process water obtained in the drawer 130 to the washing tub 110.
the water distribution system 132 is advantageously configured in such a way that water provided to the drawer 130 may be selectively:
one or more of the compartments of the drawer 130 are adapted to contain multiple doses of a respective treatment agent for performing multiple washing cycles, so that the laundry appliance 100 is configured to implement an auto-dosing functionality in which, at each washing cycle (and when the auto-dosing functionality is enabled), a predetermined amount of treatment agent is automatically taken (e.g. by means of a pumping system) from said multi-dose compartment(s).
one or more of the compartments of the drawer 130 are adapted to contain a single dose of a respective treatment agent for performing a single washing cycle.
the laundry appliance 100 also comprises a drawer seat 136 (preferably provided on a top part of a cabinet front) for housing the drawer 130, the drawer being advantageously adapted to slide within the drawer seat 136, along a longitudinal or sliding direction, between an extracted position (not illustrated in Figure 1 ) and a retracted position (shown in Figure 1 ).
the sliding direction is for example parallel to a rest surface, such as the floor, on which the laundry appliance 100 preferably rests in operation ( i.e., when it is installed in the user premises).
the laundry appliance 100 further comprises a drain 140 for example located on a top portion of a back side of the cabinet 105 - for allowing process water contained in the washing tub 110 to be discharged from the laundry appliance 100.
the laundry appliance 100 also comprises, enclosed in the cabinet 105, electrical/electronic/mechanical/hydraulic components for the operation of the laundry appliance 100, such as for example a motor, electromechanical valves, pumps and impellers of the hydraulic apparatus, one or more heating elements for heating water/treatment agents/air.
electrical/electronic/mechanical/hydraulic components for the operation of the laundry appliance 100, such as for example a motor, electromechanical valves, pumps and impellers of the hydraulic apparatus, one or more heating elements for heating water/treatment agents/air.
the laundry appliance 100 further comprises a water softening system 150 configured to receive water from the water inlet 122 and to supply soft water to the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
a water softening system 150 configured to receive water from the water inlet 122 and to supply soft water to the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
the process water provided by the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110 is advantageously obtained using soft water, improving the performance of the laundry appliance 100.
soft water laundry can be advantageously treated in a satisfactory way without requiring high temperatures, avoiding or at least reducing laundry stiffness, premature tear and wear, and skin irritation caused by the use of excessive hard water.
the input of the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110 is also configured to selectively receive water directly from the water inlet 122. In this way, if the water softening system 150 is not operative, for example because of a malfunctioning, the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110 can still be supplied with (in this case, not softened) water, bypassing the water softening system 150.
the water softening system 150 comprises a water softening agent container 155 configured to store a water softening agent capable of reducing hardness of water.
the water softening agent comprises an ion-exchange resin.
the water softening system 150 further comprises a water tank 160 configured to store a reserve of soft water - generated by the water softening agent contained in the water softening agent container 155 - and for supplying with soft water the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
the water softening system 150 further comprises a salt container 165 configured to store salt.
the salt stored in the salt container 165 is advantageously used for regenerating the water softening agent contained in the water softening agent container 155 during a water softening agent regeneration procedure.
the main components of the water softening system 150 are advantageously located in a bottom portion of the volume enclosed by the casing 105.
the water softening agent container 155 is located at a bottom and rear portion of the volume enclosed by the casing 105.
the water tank 160 is located ( e.g. , just) above the water softening agent container 155.
the salt container 165 is located at the bottom portion of the volume enclosed by the casing 105, in front of the water softening agent container 155 so that the salt container 165 can be accessed through an opening 170 provided on the front surface of the casing 105 for allowing the refilling of the salt container 165 with new amounts of salt.
a door 172 is advantageously provided on the front surface of the casing 105 for selectively opening/closing the opening 170.
the salt container 165 is advantageously configured to be extracted from the casing 105 through the opening 170 for allowing an easy refilling of salt.
the water softening agent container 155 has a first input 175 fluidly coupled to the water inlet 122 for receiving water from the latter.
the first input of the water softening agent container 155 is fluidly coupled to the water inlet 122 through a duct element 178.
the duct element 178 may be a, e.g., rigid, pipe vertically extending from the bottom portion of the of the volume enclosed by the casing 105 where the water softening agent container 155 is located up to the top portion of the back side of the cabinet 105 wherein the water inlet 122 is located.
the water softening agent container 155 has an output 180 for providing soft water obtained from the water received from the first input 175 through the water softening agent.
the water tank 160 has an input 182 configured to be selectively in fluid communication with the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155.
the fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the input 182 of the water tank 160 is selectively enabled by properly driving a water softening agent container valve 183 arranged at the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155, which will be described in greater detail in the following.
the water tank 160 has a first output 184 in fluid communication with the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110, so that the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110 can be supplied with soft water contained in the water tank 160.
the first output 184 of the water tank 160 is fluidly coupled to the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110 through a duct element 185.
the duct element 185 may be a, e.g., rigid, pipe vertically extending from the first output 184 of the water tank 160 to the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
the salt container 165 is configured to be selectively in fluid communication with the water tank 160 for receiving (soft) water from the latter.
a second output 187 of the water tank 160 is configured to be selectively in fluid communication with an input 188 of the salt container 165.
a soft water tank valve 189 is provided at the second output 187 of the water tank 160 configured to be selectively opened during the water softening agent regeneration procedure for selectively causing the second output 187 of the water tank 160 to be in fluid communication with the input 188 of the salt container 165.
the salt container 165 comprises an output 190 fluidly connected to a second input 191 of the water softening agent container 155.
a pump device 192 is provided for selectively causing liquid coming from the output 190 of the salt container 165 be pumped in the second input 191 of the water softening agent container 155.
the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 is configured to be selectively fluidly coupled to the washing tub 110 through a duct element 194.
the duct element 194 may be a, e.g., rigid, pipe vertically extending from the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 to the upper portion of the casing 105 and then reaching the washing tub 110.
the water tank 160 is advantageously formed in a single piece with the duct element 178 and/or the duct element 194.
formed in a single piece it is herein intended that the water tank 160 and the duct element(s) 178 and/or 194 are manufactured - e.g., through a single moulding step - so as to form a single assembly.
said single assembly provides for having the duct element 194 that is attached to a rear external surface of the water tank 160, and the duct element 178 that is attached to a rear external surface of the duct element 194. Similar considerations apply in case the water tank 160, the duct elements 178 and/or the duct element 194 are attached to each other in a different way.
the duct elements 178, 194 and the water tank 160 are not attached to each other to form a single assembly, but instead the duct elements 178, 194 are detached from the water tank 160.
the fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the washing tub 110 through the duct element 194 is selectively enabled by properly driving the water softening agent container valve 183 arranged at the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is configured to be switched between a first operating mode and a second operating mode.
the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 is in fluid communication with the input 182 of the water tank 160.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is in the first operating mode, fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the washing tub 110 is prevented.
the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 is in fluid communication with the washing tub 110.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is in the second operating mode, fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the input 182 of the water tank 160 is prevented.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is configured to be switched in the second operating mode during or after the water softening agent regeneration procedure.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is also configured to be switched in a third operating mode in which fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the washing tub 110, and fluid communication between the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 and the input 182 of the water tank 160 are prevented.
a duct element 195 is further provided to allow fluid communication between the water inlet 122 and the apparatus 125 for supplying process water into the washing tub 110.
the duct elements 185 and 195 are fluidly coupled to the water delivery system 132 of the apparatus 125 for supplying process water, for example by means of controllable valve devices not illustrated, so that the water delivery system 132 is fed with:
Water e.g., hard water
water inlet 122 e.g., by controlling proper valve elements not illustrated
said water flows into the duct element 178 and enters the water softening agent container 155 through the first input 175.
the water softening agent contained in the water softening agent container 155 causes a reduction of the hardness of the received water.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is then switched in the first operating mode, while the soft water tank valve 189 is kept closed, so that the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 is in fluid communication with the water tank 160. In this situation, the water tank 160 is filled with soft water coming from the water softening agent container 155.
the water delivery system 132 is configured to selectively cause soft water to be mixed or not with (an amount of) treatment agent contained in one of the compartments of the drawers 130 - schematically identified in Figure 2 with reference 196 - based on the washing cycle phase actually being carried out by the laundry appliance 100.
the water delivery system 132 supplies the received soft water to the drawer 130 in such a way that the soft water is prevented to reach the compartments 196 of the drawer 130 or in any case in such a way that the soft water is prevented to be mixed with treatment agent contained in the compartments 196 of the drawer 130.
the process water outlet 134 is supplied with process water consisting of soft water only.
the washing cycle phase actually being carried out by the laundry appliance 100 provides for supplying the washing tub 110 with process water comprising water mixed with selected (e.g., amount(s) of) treatment agent(s) (for example, during a laundry washing phase)
the water delivery system 132 supplies the received soft water to the drawer 130 in such a way that the soft water reaches one or more of selected compartments 196 of the drawer 130 containing treatment agents or, in any case, in such a way that the soft water is mixed with selected ( e.g ., amount(s) of) treatment agent(s) provided by selected compartments 196 of the drawer 130.
the process water outlet 134 is fed with process water comprising soft water mixed with treatment agent(s).
the process water comprising soft water thus reaches the washing tub 110, wherein the laundry is accordingly treated.
the washing tub In order to discharge from the laundry appliance 100 the process water contained in the washing tub 110, the washing tub is put in fluid communication with the drain 140, for example by activating a proper valve element and/or a drain pump not illustrated in the figures.
process water coming from the washing tub 110 is filtered through a corresponding drain filter element, schematically illustrated in Figure 2 with reference 198.
the water softening system 150 provides that water is softened just after it reaches the laundry appliance 100 through the water inlet 122. Since the water softening agent container 155 is directly fluidly coupled to the water inlet 122, and the water tank 160 is fluidly coupled downstream the water softening agent container 155, the water softening agent container 155 only stores soft water.
the peculiar arrangement of the water softening agent container 155 and of the water tank 160 with respect to each other and also with respect to the water inlet 122 are such to reduce the number of components of the laundry appliance 100 that can be in contact with hard water, thus avoiding or at least strongly reducing formation of limestone on laundry appliance components (such as on the walls of the water tank 160 ) that can potentially impair the correct operation of the laundry appliance 100.
the water softening system 150 can be bypassed, and the water delivery system 132 can be directly fed with water provided by the water inlet 122 through the duct element 195, for example when the water softening system 150 is not operative because of a malfunctioning of one of its components.
the soft water tank valve 189 at the second output 187 of the water tank 160 is opened, so that soft water stored in the water tank 160 flows into the salt container 165 through the input 188.
the soft water mixes with salt contained in the salt container 165 so as to generate brine.
the salt container 165 is advantageously provided with an air vent duct 199 configured to allow air inside the salt container 165 exit the salt container 165 by a pressure of soft water coming into the salt container 165 through the input 188.
the salt container 165 can be filled with soft water in an efficient way, avoiding or at least strongly reducing the formation of undesired air bubbles trapped inside the salt container 165.
the brine generated by the salt container 165 is provided to the water softening agent container 155.
the pump device 192 is activated to cause brine to be pumped out the salt container 165 from the output 190 and pumped in the water softening agent container 155 through the second input 191 thereof.
the water softening agent contained in the water softening agent container 155 is then regenerated by allowing said water softening agent react with the brine for a predetermined amount of time RT.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is switched to the third operating mode to prevent fluid communication with the apparatus 125 for supplying process water and the water tank 160, and, after that the water softening agent container 155 is filled with brine, the pump device 192 is temporally deactivated during said predetermined amount of time RT.
the water softening agent container valve 183 is switched to the second operating mode to make the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 be in fluid communication with the washing tub 110, and the pump device 192 is reactivated.
brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration is pumped through the duct element 194 toward the washing tub 110.
the brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration, before reaching the drain 140 is advantageously filtered by the drain filter element 198, so that anti-pollution standards are respected.
the duct element 194 is arranged to be in fluid communication with the drain 140 bypassing the washing tub 110.
the duct element 194 may be arranged to be directly in fluid communication with the drain 140 or to be in fluid communication with the drain 140 through the filter element 198. In this way, it is avoided that the washing tub 110 get soiled with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration procedure.
the water softening agent container 155 has a single output 180 that can be selectively in fluid communication with the water tank 160 or with the washing tub 110 through a water softening agent container valve 183 configured to be selectively switched between different valve operating modes.
the water softening agent container 155 is instead provided with two separate outputs, and particularly:
the brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration procedure is discharged into the drain 140 through the apparatus 125 for supplying process water.
the output 180 of the water softening agent container 155 may be selectively put in fluid communication with the water distribution system 132 of the apparatus 125 for supplying process water.
the water delivery system 132 of the apparatus 125 for supplying process water is supplied with brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration, coming from the water softening agent container 155.
the water delivery system 132 supplies the received brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration to the drawer 130 in such a way that the brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration is prevented to reach the compartments 196 of the drawer 130.
brine mixed with residuals of the water softening agent regeneration procedure water reaches the washing tub 110 (and then, the drain 140 ) without soiling the compartments 196 of the drawer 130 even if the apparatus 125 for supplying process water is being involved.

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Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
Textile Engineering (AREA)
Treatment Of Water By Ion Exchange (AREA)
Detail Structures Of Washing Machines And Dryers (AREA)

EP21168654.8A 2021-04-15 2021-04-15 Wäschebehandlungsgerät mit wasserenthärtungssystem und das steuerungsverfahren dafür Active EP4074881B1 (de)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number	Priority Date	Filing Date	Title
EP21168654.8A EP4074881B1 (de)	2021-04-15	2021-04-15	Wäschebehandlungsgerät mit wasserenthärtungssystem und das steuerungsverfahren dafür

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number	Priority Date	Filing Date	Title
EP21168654.8A EP4074881B1 (de)	2021-04-15	2021-04-15	Wäschebehandlungsgerät mit wasserenthärtungssystem und das steuerungsverfahren dafür

Publications (2)

Publication Number	Publication Date
EP4074881A1 true EP4074881A1 (de)	2022-10-19
EP4074881B1 EP4074881B1 (de)	2024-12-18

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Citations (6)

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EP0190675A2 (de)	1985-02-02	1986-08-13	Miele & Cie. GmbH & Co.	Waschmaschine mit Wasserenthärtungseinrichtung
DE19934954A1 (de) *	1999-07-26	2001-02-01	Aweco Appliance Sys Gmbh & Co	Haushaltsmaschine
EP1960675A1 (de)	2005-12-17	2008-08-27	ZF Friedrichshafen AG	Belüftung eines schaltelementes
US20120298153A1 (en) *	2010-02-08	2012-11-29	Enpar Technologies Inc.	Washing appliance with dedicated water-softener
US20150090648A1 (en) *	2013-10-02	2015-04-02	Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.	Softening apparatus and washing machine including the same
CN110331558A (zh) *	2019-06-27	2019-10-15	无锡小天鹅电器有限公司	衣物处理设备

2021
- 2021-04-15 EP EP21168654.8A patent/EP4074881B1/de active Active

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number	Priority date	Publication date	Assignee	Title
EP0190675A2 (de)	1985-02-02	1986-08-13	Miele & Cie. GmbH & Co.	Waschmaschine mit Wasserenthärtungseinrichtung
DE19934954A1 (de) *	1999-07-26	2001-02-01	Aweco Appliance Sys Gmbh & Co	Haushaltsmaschine
EP1960675A1 (de)	2005-12-17	2008-08-27	ZF Friedrichshafen AG	Belüftung eines schaltelementes
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CN110331558A (zh) *	2019-06-27	2019-10-15	无锡小天鹅电器有限公司	衣物处理设备

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