JPH02209193A - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To execute washing in a correct feed water state and to prevent the deterioration of cleaning force by providing a means for detecting a variation quantity of a output from a water level sensor and detecting a water level variation quantity in the course of soak washing, and an indicator for displaying a water level variation. CONSTITUTION:A water receiving tank 17 is provided on the outside of a dehydrating tank 4 in which an agitator 1 is provided in the center and a through-hole 5 is provided on a side wall, a connecting pipe 4 is raised from the water receiving tank 7, a water level sensor 15 provided on the upper part of the connecting pipe 14 is constituted of a core 15b which is moved by the quantity of water and a coil 15a, and by combining a capacitor with the coil 15a, an LC oscillation is executed. As for the water level sensor 15, its output becomes linear against a water level, and the water level can be detected steplessly. When a soak switch is provided on an operating switch part 18, and a water level is set by a water level setting switch of the operation switch part 18 provided with an indicator for displaying a variation of the water level on a display part 21, an output is provided to a driving part 27 from a controller 16, a feed water valve 17 is opened and feed water is started. When a detected water level reaches a set value, an OFF signal is outputted to the feed water valve 17, feed water is stopped, and soak washing is executed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a washing machine that can be operated under automatic control using an electronic control circuit such as a microcomputer.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, there is a washing machine as shown in FIG. 4, which is a fully automatic one-tank stirring type, and (1) in the figure has a through hole (2). An agitator that has a hollow cylindrical body at its center and vertically long stirring blades (3) radially arranged around its circumferential surface.
4) is a dehydration tank in which this agitator (1) is arranged at the center and a through hole (5) is provided in the side wall, and a balancer (6) is formed in the upper opening.

(7) is a water receiving tank provided outside the dewatering tank (4), and although not shown, this is provided with a drain port to which a drain pipe is connected.

In the figure, (8) is a motor, which is connected to a rotation transmission section (12) via a deceleration transmission mechanism of a pulley (9), a belt (10), and a pulley (11). The rotation transmission section (12) has a double drive shaft (12a) (12b) that is switched by a spring clutch mechanism (13), and the outer drive shaft (12a) is connected to the dehydration tank (4). Inner drive shaft (
12b) are respectively coupled to the agitator (1).

The motor (8) is provided with a detection means (not shown) for detecting its rotational speed, and a speed generator that utilizes a power generation mechanism is attached.

Further, a pressure pipe (14) is connected to the water receiving tank (7), and a water level sensor (19) is disposed above the pressure pipe (14). As this water level sensor (19), a cam-type mechanical pressure switch having bimetal contacts or the like is used.

Although not shown in the drawings, all of these mechanisms are housed in an exterior through vibration isolating means, and a control device (16) such as a microcomputer is disposed on the upper part of this exterior.

FIG. 5 shows a control block diagram of this control device (16), which includes an operation switch section (1g) equipped with various switches such as a washing course selection switch and a water level setting switch, and a water level detection section (19) of the water level sensor (19). 24), motor (8
) and a lid unbalance detection section (26) for detecting unevenness of the laundry, etc., are introduced into the control device (16),
A display section (21) equipped with a lamp etc. that displays the output signal from the control device (16), the washing course, the set water level, etc.
, the drive unit (22) of the motor (8), the drive unit (23) of the drain valve, and the drive unit (27) of the water supply valve (17). In the figure, (20) indicates a power source.

Next, usage and operation will be explained.

The water supply level, which can be adjusted in three levels (high, medium, and low), the washing process, which consists of three steps of washing and rinsing, and the washing process, such as the washing time and the strength of the water flow, are controlled by a control device (
16), and to start washing, first press the switch section (18) to select this washing course, for example, the standard course.
Select by.

The control device (16) receives the output signal from the operation switch section (18) and outputs a control signal to the drive section (23) of the water supply valve (17), which opens the water supply valve (17) and opens the dehydration tank. (4) Water supply starts automatically.

As water supply progresses and water accumulates in the water tank (7), the impulse pipe (1
4) The pressure inside changes, and this pressure change causes the pressure inside the impulse pipe (14) to change.
Detected by the water level sensor (19) installed at the top of the
The water level is detected by the water level detection section (24), and a detection signal from there is outputted to the control device (16).

When the control device (16) receives this water level detection signal and determines that the water level has reached a preset water level, it outputs the signal to the drive unit (27) of the water supply valve (17) to close the water supply valve (17). Stop water supply.

Next, the drive section (22) of the motor (8) is turned on by the output from the control device (16), and the agitator (1) is rotated by the motor (8) to start the washing operation.

By the way, during the washing process, there is pre-washing, which is done when the laundry is very dirty, after the water supply is turned off, and before the washing agitator (1) as mentioned above is rotated and the washing is started. The item is soaked in the dehydration tank (4) for a certain period of time, and the user sets the desired water level using the operation switch (18), and when the desired water level is reached, the washing process is stopped and the washing process can be performed as desired. The washing operation is started again after a period of time has elapsed.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

When performing soak washing, for example, if the washing machine is installed outdoors, rainwater may enter the dehydration tank during soak washing, causing the water level in the tank to rise. The water may not be what you expected, or the water in the tank may become contaminated with rainwater.

However, as mentioned above, conventional water level sensors use a cam-type mechanical pressure switch with bimetallic contacts, and because there is hysteresis between the piezoelectric switch and the reset switch, the water level can only be detected in stages. Therefore, it was not possible to detect even the slightest change in water level, such as an increase in water due to rainwater intrusion.

For this reason, the washing machine starts washing with dirty water without noticing the intrusion of rainwater, resulting in the inconvenience that the desired cleaning power cannot be obtained.

An object of the present invention is to provide a washing machine that can eliminate the disadvantages of the conventional example, detect even the slightest change in water level during pre-soak washing, start washing in an appropriate water supply state, and prevent a decline in detergency. There is a particular thing.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a washing machine that can be automatically operated by an electronic control circuit such as a microcomputer, and includes a water level sensor that can detect the water level steplessly, a change in the output from the water level sensor, and a washing machine that can automatically operate the washing machine. The gist of the present invention is to provide means for detecting the amount of change in water level during washing, and a display for displaying this change in water level.

[Effect]

According to the present invention, if there is a change in the water level during pre-soak washing, even if the change is slight due to rainwater intrusion, the water level sensor detects the amount of change in water level, and after the pre-soak wash is finished, washing starts. You can know this because it will show you that there has been a change in the water level when you do so.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of the washing machine of the present invention, and the basic configuration is the same as that of the conventional example explained with reference to FIGS. Detailed explanation will be omitted.

Also in the present invention, a water receiving tank (7) is provided outside the dehydration tank (4) in which the agitator (1) is arranged in the center and the through hole (5) is provided in the side wall, and as in the conventional case, from this water receiving tank (7), Impulse tube (14
), but in the present invention, this is used as a water level sensor (15) disposed at the top of the impulse pipe (14), and a core (iron core) (15b) that moves according to the amount of water and a corresponding core (15b). It consists of a coil (15a) to and a coil (15a).
5a) was combined with a capacitor to perform LC oscillation. As a result, the output of the water level sensor (15) becomes linear with respect to the water level as shown in the characteristic curve diagram of FIG. 2, and the water level can be detected steplessly.

The block diagram of washing control in the present invention is also similar to the conventional example shown in FIG. 5, but in the present invention, the operation switch section (
18) is provided with a pre-soak switch for manual operation when pre-washing is performed, and a display section (21) is provided.
An indicator was installed to indicate if the water level changes during soaking and washing.

This indicator may be equipped with a separate notification lamp, but
It may be configured such that an existing water level lamp, for example, is made to blink.

Next, a washing operation method when pre-washing is performed will be explained with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 3.

First, turn on the pre-soak switch and set a setting flag to perform pre-soak washing during the washing process (Step I).

Next, as in the past, when the desired water level is set using the water level setting switch of the operation switch section (18), the control device (16
) is output to the drive unit (27) of the water supply valve (17), the water supply valve (17) opens, and water supply starts automatically.

When water accumulates in the dewatering tank (4) and the water receiving tank (7), the pressure in the impulse pipe (14) changes, and if the case without water is used as a predetermined output oscillation standard, the pressure changes to the water level sensor (
15), the core (15b) becomes the coil (15a)
Since the frequency of the oscillation output decreases as it approaches (see Figure 2), the water level can be grasped steplessly from this decreasing linear state.

When the water level detected in this way reaches a preset value set in the control device (16), the control device (16) sends an off signal from the water supply valve drive unit (27) to the water supply valve (17). is output (step port), and the water level sensor at this time (
The oscillation frequency from 15) is stored in the storage unit (16) of the control device (16).
(internal RAM) (step c).

Once the water supply has been stopped as described above, at any time,
Wash the laundry by soaking it in water in the dehydration tank (4).

When the washing operation is started after soaking and washing is completed, the water level sensor (19
), that is, the oscillation output frequency of the current water level is captured again (Step E), and this oscillation frequency is compared to the oscillation frequency before the start of soaking washing that was captured in the previous step (C). By comparison, it is determined whether the water level after the pre-soaking has increased compared to the water level before the pre-soaking has started.

As a result of the judgment, if the water level has increased after soaking and washing, the notification lamp on the display section (21) will be turned on or the water level lamp will blink to indicate the change in the water level. Notify changes.

In this state, the washing process does not proceed to the next washing step (stepped) until the off switch of the operation switch section (18) is pressed, and the user notices that the water is dirty and replaces the water in the tank with fresh water. After dealing with this, when the off switch is pressed, the user checks the state of the water in the dewatering tank (4) and water receiving tank (7) and clears the setting flag, assuming that it is appropriate. Then, start the next washing process (Step 1).

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, the washing machine of the present invention detects and displays even the slightest change in water level during soak washing, so it will be able to tell if, for example, rainwater has entered the tank during soak washing. This prevents the washing operation from starting with water contaminated with rainwater, etc., and prevents a decrease in washing power.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of the washing machine of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a characteristic curve diagram showing the relationship between the water level sensor output and the water level,
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation, FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a conventional example, and FIG. 5 is a block diagram of operation control. (1)... Agitator (2)... Through hole (12a (15a)... Stirring blade (4)... Selection and dehydration tank...
Through hole (6)... Balancer... Water tank
(8)...Motor...Pulley (1
0)...■Belt...Pulley (12)...
・Rotation transmission part) (12b)... Drive shaft... Spring clutch mechanism... Impulse tube (15)... Water level sensor)
... Coil (15b) ... Core ... Control device ... Water supply valve (18) ... Operation switch section
...Water level sensor (20)...Power supply...Display section
(22) Motor drive unit Drain valve drive unit (24) Water level detection unit Speed detection unit Lid unbalance detection unit Water supply valve drive unit

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a washing machine that can be operated automatically using an electronic control circuit such as a microcomputer, a water level sensor that can detect the water level steplessly and the amount of change in the output from the water level sensor is used to detect the amount of change in water level during pre-soak washing. A washing machine characterized by being provided with means and an indicator for displaying this water level change.