JPH043239B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a detergent supply device for a washing machine, etc., which is installed in a device such as a washing machine and supplies detergent to a detergent receptacle thereof. .

(Prior Art) Conventionally, as a detergent supply device for this type of washing machine, etc., there is one shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 54-43827. This device is generally installed in a washing machine, and the detergent stored in a hopper is discharged by a valve manually operated by the user and supplied into a washing tub.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) In the case of the above conventional washing machine, the entire installation structure for the washing machine is fixed, and it is not easy to remove the hopper together with the valve. Therefore, when a user wants to put detergent into the hopper, for example, the user has to carry the detergent container up to the top of the hopper one by one, and then pour detergent from the detergent container into the hopper. It also has the disadvantage of being forced to do so,
A solution to this point was requested.

The detergent supply device for washing machines, etc. of the present invention has been made to satisfy the above-mentioned needs, and therefore, its purpose is to provide a device that facilitates the work of storing detergent in a hopper, and also to provide a detergent supply device for washing machines, etc. The purpose is to prevent the occurrence of new problems in the process, and to provide a product that is also easier to handle, safer, and more economical.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) The detergent supply device for a washing machine or the like of the present invention includes a hopper that accommodates and stores detergent, and a detergent dispenser that discharges detergent from the hopper toward a detergent receiving portion. The unit is removably attached to the device, and a lid is provided at the detergent outlet of the unit so as to normally close the detergent outlet, and when the detergent is supplied, An electric drive source that is energized substantially in synchronization with the operation of the detergent dispensing member is arranged laterally away from the unit mounting portion, and is actuated by this drive source to force the lid to resist its closing force. It is characterized by the fact that it is provided with an operating rod that opens it.

(Function) According to the above means, the hopper can be easily removed from the device in a unit state with the detergent dispensing member, and in the removed state, it is possible to carry out the detergent storage work, etc. as desired.

When the hopper is removed as described above, there is a concern that detergent may spill from the detergent outlet when the hopper is removed or carried in the removed state. On the other hand, when the hopper is removed, the lid provided at the detergent outlet portion is closed, thereby eliminating the fear of detergent spilling.

Furthermore, even when the hopper is attached, the lid remains closed except when detergent is being supplied, thereby eliminating the fear of detergent spilling due to operational vibrations or the like when the hopper is attached.

The lid can be opened automatically when the detergent is supplied by the power of an electric drive source that is energized approximately in synchronization with the operation of the detergent dispensing member, and the lid can be opened again when the lid is closed. Since the opening and closing operations can be performed automatically by the biasing force applied to the lid, there is no need for the user to manually perform these operations one by one, and first, the opening and closing itself can be performed accurately.

Furthermore, since the lid is opened by the electric drive source via the operating rod, the electric drive source can be located further away from the unit mounting part, and the arrangement is such that water splashes can be avoided. be able to. Also, in this case, even if an electromagnet is used as the electric drive source, the operating rod can be constantly connected to the electric drive source, which reduces the force required compared to directly operating the lid, which can only be separated. It can be operated reliably with a small amount of equipment.

(Example) An example in which the present invention is applied to a detergent supply device for a washing machine will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, in Figure 2, 1 is the outer box of the washing machine,
Reference numeral 2 indicates an upper cover attached to the upper surface of the upper cover; 3 indicates a bi-fold type lid provided on the upper cover 2 so that it can be opened and closed; and 4 indicates an upper cover 2 located in front of the cover 3.
This is an operation panel installed on the front edge of the machine. On the other hand, reference numeral 5 designates a rear panel located behind the lid 3 and provided at the rear edge of the upper cover 2, and is provided with a power switch 6 and a hopper 7.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the hopper 7 includes an inner wall 9 made of, for example, transparent plastic and having a horizontally cylindrical detergent delivery portion 8 at its lowest part, and an outer wall 10 made of transparent plastic surrounding the outer periphery of the inner wall 9.
This constitutes the entire peripheral wall 11, and furthermore, the outer wall 10 has an upper part 10a and a lower part 10b that are separately manufactured and joined together, and the uppermost part thereof is fitted inside the upper outer peripheral rib 12 of the inner wall 9. The inner wall 9 is connected to the outer periphery of the inner wall 9 with a predetermined distance 13 therebetween. Note that 14 is a lid of the hopper 7.

Further, 15 is a lower part 1 of the outer wall 10 on one side (left side in FIG. 1) of both sides of the lowermost part of the outer wall 10.
0b, and 16 is a claw formed integrally with a push button 17 which is retractably installed on the outer wall 10 and the lower part 10b on the other side (right side in the figure), while 18 is a claw formed integrally with the As shown in FIG. 3, this is a recessed part serving as a unit mounting part formed on the rear panel 5 by surrounding the upper edge with a rib 19, and a hole 20 is formed on one of both sides of the recessed part (on the left side in FIG. 1). A hole 21 is formed on the other side (the right side in the figure), and the pawl 15 is engaged with the hole 20 of the hole 21 to open the hole 21.
The hopper 7 is removably attached to the rear panel by engaging the claw 16 with the hopper 7.

Reference numeral 22 denotes a detergent dispensing member inserted in advance into the interior of the detergent dispensing portion 8 located in the recess 18 when the hopper 7 is attached, and in particular, in the case of this embodiment, it is composed of a coil, and its base end (the left end in FIG. 1) is attached to a power transmission shaft 23 that is inserted into the base end of the detergent dispensing section 8 and rotatably supported, whereby the detergent dispensing member 22 is integrated with the hopper 7. and unitize them.

Reference numeral 25 denotes a motor attached to the left end of the upper cover 2 in FIG. Screw 2 shown in Figure 4
8, and is attached to the upper cover 2 by tightening it, and a drive gear 29 that also serves as a waterproof cap is attached to the rotating shaft 25a, and the drive gear 2
9 is meshed with a driven gear 30 attached to the end of the transmission shaft 23 protruding from the detergent delivery section 8.

Reference numeral 31 denotes a recess extending over almost the entire rear edge of the upper cover 2, which includes a drain port facing into the inside of a washing tub (not shown) disposed in the outer box 1 near the tip of the water receiving portion 26. 32 is formed. Moreover, the recess 31
A detergent receiving part 34 is formed at a portion of the hopper 7 located below the detergent outlet 33 at the tip of the detergent delivery part 8, separated from other parts by partition walls 35 and 36. As shown in FIG. 5, this detergent receiving part 34 has a front-downward slope, and has a supply port 37 facing the inside of the washing tub at its tip, and a rear end. A water supply device 38 is arranged in series with a water supply valve 39. 40 is located above the detergent receiving part 34 and is located in the recessed part 18 of the rear panel 5.
This is an opening formed at the bottom for passing detergent through and also for cleaning.

Reference numeral 41 denotes a lid provided at the detergent outlet 33 portion of the hopper 7 (hereinafter referred to as a small lid to distinguish it from the hopper 7 and the lid 14 described above), and more specifically, as shown in FIG. Hopper 7 outer wall lower part 10b
The upper end portion is pivotally supported by a shaft portion 42,
Near its upper end is a protrusion 43 as shown in FIG.
is formed. 44 is a spring interposed between the protrusion 43 portion of the small lid 41 and the push button 17;
This biases the push button 17 outward and also biases the small lid 41 inward (in the direction of the detergent outlet 33).
It has come to be in a state where it is always occluded. 45 is a diagonal tongue piece formed at the rear part near the lower end of the small lid 42.

On the other hand, 46 is an operating rod provided on the small lid 41, particularly below the oblique tongue piece 45, and is a horizontally long L.
The I-shaped part 46b has an I-shaped part 46b at the right end in FIG. It is rotatably supported. 49 is I-shaped part 4
This is a bifurcated portion formed at the upper end of 6. Then 50
The support stand 5 is located on the opposite side of the small lid 41 of the operating rod 46 and is laterally separated from the recess 18 which is the unit mounting portion.
In this embodiment, the electric drive source is an electromagnet installed and fixed on the motor 25 so as to be energized in synchronization with the operation of the detergent dispenser member 22.
It has a plunger 50a, and the bifurcated portion 49 of the operating rod 46 is connected to the tip of the plunger 50a by a pin 52.

Incidentally, 53 is a stirring body rotatably disposed inside the hopper 7 with a shaft 54 passed between the front and back of the hopper 7, and has a plurality of holes 55 and a plurality of protrusions 56 protruding in the front-rear direction. It has a large number of protrusions 57 that protrude outward from the periphery, and one of the protrusions 57 is engaged with the detergent dispensing member 22.

Now, in the case of the device constructed as described above, when using it, first press the push button 17 with the spring 44.
By pushing inward against the urging force of
6 is removed from the hole 21, and then the claw 15 is removed from the hole 20, and the entire hopper 7 (unit) is pulled up as shown in FIG. In this way, the entire hopper 7 (unit) is removed, and in this removed state,
Next, the lid 14 is opened, a detergent such as a powdered detergent 58 is put into the hopper 7, and the lid 14 is closed. Then, the hopper 7 (unit) is installed as shown in FIG. 1, so that the powdered detergent 58 is stored in the installed hopper 7. In this state, when the necessary switches on the operation panel 4 are operated in order to wash the clothes, a control device (not shown), for example, a microcomputer installed in the lower part of the operation panel 4, is activated.
starts operating, the electromagnet 50 first
Then, the motor 25 and the water supply valve 39 are energized. Of the electromagnet 50, motor 25, and water supply valve 39 that are energized in this way, the electromagnet 50 pulls the plunger 50a due to the energization, and further this plunger 5
0a pulls the bifurcated portion 49 of the operating rod 46 via the pin 52. Therefore, this causes the operating rod 46 to move to the eighth position.
As shown in the figure, the tip of the L-shaped portion 46a touches the diagonal tongue piece 45 of the small lid 41 and pushes up the small lid 41, so that the small lid 41, which has been in a closed state until now,
is released against the biasing force of the spring 44. On the other hand, the motor 25 is started by being energized and transmits its rotational force from the rotating shaft 25a to the driving gear 29, and further from the driving gear 29 to the driven gear 30, and then to the transmission shaft 23 and the detergent dispensing member 2.
2, the detergent dispensing member 22 is rotated, particularly in a so-called spiral direction. Therefore, the powdered detergent 58 in the hopper 7 is advanced toward the detergent outlet 33 within the detergent delivery section 8 by the rotation of the detergent dispensing member 22, and then
3 through the inner part of the opened small lid 41 as shown by arrow A in FIG. 8, and falls onto the detergent receiver 34. On the other hand, the water supply valve 39 allows water to flow onto the detergent receiver 34 through the water supply device 38 as shown by arrow B in FIG. The water is washed away, and both of them are supplied from the supply port 37 into the washing tub (not shown).

When the detergent dispensing member 22 is rotated as described above, the stirring member 53, which has one of the protrusions 57 engaged with the detergent dispensing member 22, sequentially engages the protrusion 57 with the detergent dispensing member 22. The powder detergent 58 in the hopper 7 is thereby agitated, and the powder detergent 58 can be introduced into the detergent delivery section 8 more smoothly.
Moreover, after finishing supplying such powdered detergent 58,
The electromagnet 50, the motor 25, and the water supply valve 39 are each cut off, whereby the small lid 1 is released from the forced open state by the electromagnet 50 and returns to its original closed state with the biasing force of the spring 44 maintained. Further, the rotation of the detergent dispensing member 22 is stopped to stop dispensing the powdered detergent 58, and the detergent receiving portion 34 is also stopped.
The water flowing above is stopped.

In this way, according to the present embodiment, the powdered detergent 58 can be supplied without leaving it in the hands of the user, and furthermore, in the structure, the hopper 7 (unit) is connected to the rear panel 5 as described above. As a result, the powdered detergent 58 can be stored at a location with the hopper 7 removed, unlike conventional hoppers that are fixedly installed. You can eliminate the hassle and stress.

Therefore, if the hopper 7 (unit) is removable as described above, there is a concern that the powdered detergent 58 may spill out from the detergent outlet 33 when it is removed or when it is carried in a detached state. . On the other hand, when the hopper 7 is removed, the small lid 41 that has closed the detergent outlet 33 under the biasing force of the spring 44 remains closed. As a result, spilling of the powdered detergent 58 is also prevented by the small lid 41 which remains closed, and this worry can be eliminated.

Furthermore, even when the hopper 7 is attached, the small lid 41 is kept closed except when the powdered detergent 58 is being supplied. It is also possible to eliminate the fear of the powdered detergent 58 spilling due to vibration during operation.

And powder detergent 5 with hopper 7 installed
8, the small lid 41 can be automatically opened via the operating rod 46 by the power of the electromagnet 50, which is energized in synchronization with the energization of the motor 25 and the operation of the detergent dispenser member 22. On the other hand, since the small lid 41 is normally energized to be in the closed state, the return to the closed state from the open state can be performed automatically, so that opening and closing can be done automatically by the user. There is no need to manually perform each step,
Not only can the handle be improved, but also the opening and closing can be performed accurately without being too early or too late. can. In this case, in order to operate the electromagnet 50 in synchronization with the motor 25 as described above,
There is also the advantage that the electromagnet 50 and the motor 25 can be simply connected in parallel.

Furthermore, by opening the small lid 41 by the electromagnet 50 via the operating rod 46, the electromagnet 50 can be placed away from the recess 18 (unit mounting portion) by the length of the operating rod 46. This makes it possible to avoid splashing water on the electromagnet 50 when the hopper 7 is removed, etc., and it is possible to obtain excellent waterproofness necessary for safety. Also, in this case, if the electromagnet 50 applies a direct magnetic force to the small lid 41 to open it, then
Since the electromagnet 50 must be provided at a considerable distance from the small lid 41 in order to secure space for opening the small lid 41, it must emit a large magnetic force and is necessarily expensive. Although it may be obvious, in this embodiment, the force of the electromagnet 50 is applied to the small lid 41 via the operating rod 46, and the operating rod 46 is connected to the electromagnet 50.
Therefore, compared to directly operating the small lid 41, which can only be in the separated state as described above, it can be operated reliably with less force, and costs can be reduced. .

Note that the electric drive source exemplified by the electromagnet 50 described above may be other than the electromagnet 50, for example, a motor or the like. Further, the energization and de-energization of this electric drive source does not have to be strictly synchronized with the operation of the detergent dispenser member 22, and the power can be energized a little earlier and de-energized a little later. It's okay to come out. Further, the detergent receiving portion is not limited to the detergent receiving portion 34 formed on the rear panel 5 described above, but may also be a washing tub. In other words, the detergent may be directly fed into the washing tub and the water supply may be used. It may be supplied without any restrictions. Further, the detergent dispensing member is not limited to the above-described coil, but may be a conventional valve or screw, for example. In addition, the motor 25 also serves as a drive source for rotationally driving the detergent dispensing member.
For example, it may be a water wheel or the like that operates in a water supply channel. As a whole, it is not limited to washing machines, but can be similarly applied to all devices that function using detergent, such as dishwashers, and the agitator 53, etc. In addition, the detergent may be a liquid detergent other than the powder detergent 58, for example.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above description, the detergent supply device for a washing machine or the like of the present invention is installed in a device such as a washing machine and supplies detergent to the detergent receiving portion thereof. A hopper for accommodating and storing the detergent, and a detergent dispensing member for discharging the detergent from the hopper toward the detergent receiving portion are provided as a unit, and the unit is removably attached to the device, and the unit is removably attached to the device. An electric drive source is provided at the detergent outlet portion so that the lid is normally biased to close the detergent outlet, and is energized substantially in synchronization with the operation of the detergent dispenser when the powdered detergent is supplied. is arranged laterally away from the unit mounting part, and is provided with an operating rod that is operated by the drive source to open the lid against the closing force of the hopper. It is easy to store the detergent, and it also prevents the detergent from spilling out when the unit is being removed and installed, which is a new problem with the unit itself, and it is easy to handle. It also has excellent effects in terms of safety, economy, etc.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the main parts, Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the upper part of the washing machine where the same parts exist, and Fig. 3 is the upper part of the washing machine. External perspective view with the hopper removed, No. 4
The figure is a vertical side view of the main part with the hopper removed, Figure 5 is a vertical side view of the same part at a different cross-sectional position, Figure 6 is a perspective view of the small lid alone, and Figure 7 is the main part with the hopper removed. FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional front view in an intermediate state, and is a view corresponding to a portion of FIG. 1 in a detergent supply state. In the drawing, 1 is the outer box of the washing machine, 7 is the hopper, 15,
16 is a claw, 17 is a push button, 18 is a recess (unit mounting part), 22 is a detergent dispenser, 25 is a motor, 2
9 is a drive gear, 30 is a driven gear, 33 is a detergent outlet, 34 is a detergent receiver, 41 is a small lid (lid), 44 is a spring, 45 is a tongue piece, 46 is an operating rod, 50 is an electromagnet (electrically driven source), 58 is powder detergent (detergent)
shows.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A device installed in a washing machine or other device to supply detergent to its detergent receiver, including a hopper that accommodates and stores the detergent, and a detergent dispenser that discharges the detergent from the hopper toward the detergent receiver. The unit is removably attached to the device, and a lid is provided at the detergent outlet of the unit so as to normally close the detergent outlet, and the detergent is An electric drive source that is energized approximately in synchronization with the operation of the detergent dispensing member when supplying the detergent is disposed laterally away from the unit mounting portion, and is actuated by the drive source to close the lid. A detergent supply device for a washing machine, etc., characterized by being provided with an operating rod that opens against force.