JPH0444799A - Washing machine cloth amount detection device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cloth amount detection device for a washing machine that detects the amount of cloth in a washing tub based on the magnitude of load applied to stirring blades provided at the inner bottom of the washing tub. It is.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In recent years, washing machines that perform optimal washing by determining the water level, amount of detergent, washing time, rinsing time, etc. according to the amount of clothes in the washing tub have become mainstream.

Therefore, various detection devices for washing machines that detect the amount of cloth in the washing tub have been proposed. For example, as shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-139298, when laundry is put into the washing tub and operation is started, water is first supplied to the washing tub at a predetermined level, and then water is supplied into the washing tub. The amount of laundry was determined by driving the agitating blades installed at the bottom and detecting the number of rotations of the agitating blades at this time. This cloth amount detection is based on the principle that when the amount of cloth in the washing tub is large, the rotation speed of the stirring blade is low, and when the amount of cloth in the washing tub is small, the rotation speed of the stirring blade is high.

In addition, the method to increase the detection accuracy in the above cloth amount detection is as follows.
This is proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 176491/1983. In this method of detecting the amount of cloth, the motor is driven with less power than during normal washing only during the period when the rotation speed of the stirring blade is detected, so that the rotation speed of the stirring blade is easily influenced by the amount of cloth.
This allows the amount of cloth to be detected with high accuracy.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In such a conventional placement detection method, the amount of laundry is determined after the laundry is put into the washing tub, water is supplied to a predetermined level, and the laundry is stirred. There was an inconvenience in that a person had to stay with the washing machine for 1 to 2 minutes after the machine started operating in order to put the same amount of detergent into the washing tub.

In addition, when determining the amount of laundry, if it is determined that the amount of laundry is too large, it is troublesome to take the wet laundry out of the washing tub.

In view of the above-mentioned problems, the first object of the present invention is to accelerate the timing of determining the amount of laundry in the washing tub.

The second purpose is to improve placement detection accuracy.

The third purpose is to perform cloth amount detection control depending on the amount of cloth and to improve the accuracy of cloth amount detection.

Means for Solving the Problems A first means of the present invention for achieving the above-mentioned first object is to provide a motor for driving a stirring blade provided at the inner bottom of a washing tub, and a motor for controlling energization of this motor. control means;
The motor control means includes a rotation speed detection means for detecting the rotation speed of the stirring blade or the stirring blade drive system, and a cloth amount determination means for determining the amount of cloth based on the output of the rotation speed detection means. There is a cloth amount detection step in which the stirring blade is operated at a rotation speed lower than the normal rotation speed before water is supplied to the cloth amount detection means, and the cloth amount determination means determines the cloth amount based on the output of the rotation speed detection means in this cloth amount detection step. This is a configuration that determines.

A second means of the present invention for achieving the above-mentioned second object is a configuration in which the amount of cloth is determined based on the output of the rotation speed detection means during the OFF period or ON period of the motor during the cloth amount detection step. .

A third means of the present invention for achieving the third object is a structure in which the cloth amount detection step is divided into a front step and a back step, and the rotation speed of the motor is made different between the front step and the back step. .

Effect According to the first means, by putting the laundry into the washing tub and rotating the stirring blade at low speed, the laundry rotates together with the stirring blade, and the gap between the laundry and the washing tub at that time is A change in the rotational speed of the stirring blade is detected due to the frictional resistance of the stirring blade, and the amount of cloth is immediately determined from the degree of change.

According to the second means, a change in the rotational speed during the OFF period or ON period of the motor is detected in the cloth amount detection step. Focusing on the fact that when the amount of cloth is large, the change in the rotation speed during the motor ON period is large, and when the amount of cloth is small, the change in the rotation speed during the motor OFF period is large. The amount of cloth is determined with high accuracy by detecting the rotational speed during the OFF period and the ON period.

According to the third means, the low rotational speed of the motor in the cloth amount detection step is made different between the preceding step and the subsequent step. If the rotation speed of the motor for detecting the amount of cloth is set high, the degree of change in the rotation speed will be large when the amount of cloth is large, and if the rotation speed of the motor is set low, the change in the rotation speed will be large when the amount of cloth is small. It is possible to detect the amount of cloth with higher accuracy, regardless of whether it is loose or the amount of cloth.

EXAMPLE Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a washing machine including a cloth amount detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a washing tub 2 into which laundry 10 is placed is rotatably arranged in an outer tub 1, and an agitating blade 3 is rotatably arranged at the inner bottom of the washing tub 2. . A motor 5, a speed reducer 4 that reduces the rotation speed of the motor 5 to drive the stirring blade 3, and a rotation speed detector 6 that detects the rotation speed of the motor 5 are arranged at the outer bottom of the outer tank 1. be. Also, outer tank 1
A water level detector 8 detects the water level in the outer tank 1, and a water supply valve 9 supplies water into the outer tank 1.

The motor 5, drain valve 7, and water supply valve 9 are controlled by a motor control means 15, a drain valve control means 17, and a water supply valve control means 19, respectively.
The drive is controlled by The motor control means 15, the drain valve control means 17, and the water supply valve control means 19 are controlled based on signals from the main control means 11 comprised of a microcomputer that executes a washing sequence. Main control means 11
inputs the signal from the rotation speed detector 6 via the rotation speed detection control section 16 and also inputs the signal from the water level detector 8 via the water level detection control section 16 .

Next, the specific operation will be explained with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4, focusing on FIG.

First, step 21 is to put the laundry 10 into the washing tub 2.
), when the start switch instructing the start of operation is pressed (step 22), the main control means 11 executes a cloth amount detection step. That is, in response to a signal from the main control means 11, the motor control means 15 causes the motor 5 to operate as shown in FIG.
/3 is the power, and the power that has been sorted and becomes only the shaded area is supplied. This electric power causes the motor 5 to rotate at about 40% of its normal speed and drives the stirring blades via the speed reducer v&4 (step 23). The rotation of the stirring blade 3 is detected by the rotation speed detector 6 via the speed reducer 4 (step 24), and the signal is sent to the rotation speed detection control section 16, and the motor is turned ON.
It is accumulated separately when the power is on and when it is off.

On the other hand, the rotation of the motor 5 is stopped for 0.3 seconds to the right (OF) as shown in FIG.
F) 0.3 seconds, 0.3 seconds to the left, 0.3 seconds pause, repeated 3 times for a total of 3.6 seconds. As a result, the rotation speed of the stirring blade 3 shows changes in the curves A and B in FIG. Curve A is the change characteristic when the amount of cloth is small, and curve B is the change characteristic when the amount of cloth is large. That is, in A, the rotational speed of the motor 5 is almost constant when it is ON, and inertial rotation is observed when it is OFF. This inertial rotation time has a strong correlation with the amount of cloth when the amount of cloth is small. Next, in case B, the start-up is slow when the motor 5 is turned on, and almost no inertial rotation is observed. This delay in start-up has a large correlation with the amount of cloth when the amount of cloth is large. Therefore, highly accurate detection can be achieved by detecting the amount of cloth using the rotation speed when it is OFF when the amount of cloth is low, and using the rotation speed when it is ON when the amount of cloth is high.

Based on this characteristic, the data accumulated for a predetermined time separately when the motor 5 is ON and OFF by the rotation speed detection control section 16 is sent to the main control means 11 and used to determine the amount of cloth (step 2).
5) to (step 33).

The setting value when determining the amount of cloth is determined experimentally based on the above characteristics. The integrated value when motor 5 is OFF is determined first with Fl (Step 25), then with F2.
, F3 is determined (steps 26 and 27), and finally, the integrated value when the motor 5 is turned on is determined by N1 (step 28). Here, the relationship is Fl>F2>F3. In this way, from (step 30) to (step 33) in FIG.
), the amount of cloth is determined sequentially as "extremely small,""small,""medium," and "large." If the integrated value when the motor 5 is turned on is equal to or greater than N1, it is determined that the amount of cloth that can be washed is exceeded (overload) (step 29). When the determination is completed, the water supply valve control section 19 operates according to instructions from the main control means 11 to open the water supply valve 9 and start water supply, and the washing process begins. From then on, it performs the rinsing and spin-drying steps just like a conventional washing machine.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 5 and 6.

FIG. 5 shows the flow of operation of the main control means 11 of this embodiment.
Figure 6 shows the control of the motor 5 and the stirring blade 3 during the placement detection process.
shows the relationship with the rotation speed. This embodiment differs from the previous embodiments in handling of rotational integration value data and control of the motor 5 when detecting the amount of cloth, so only these points will be explained.

First, regarding the rotation integrated value data, the OF of motor 5 is
Use data from time F.

Next, the motor 5 is controlled to operate at a very low rotation speed during the first half of the predetermined period of cloth amount detection, and at a low rotation speed during the second half.

In Figure 6, from 0 seconds to 1.2 seconds, the power shown in Figure 4 B is applied and the rotation is extremely low, and from 1.2 seconds to 2.4 seconds, the power shown in Figure 4 A is applied.
Apply power to drive at low rotation speed.

The relationship between this motor drive and the stirring blade rotation speed is the same as the above-mentioned 6th
As shown in the figure. Curve A in Figure 6 is the stirring blade rotation characteristic at ultra-low rotation and small amount of material, curve B is the stirring blade rotation characteristic at ultra-low rotation and high amount of material, and curve C is at low rotation. Curve D is the rotational characteristic of the stirring blade at low rotation speeds. Looking at the stirring blade rotation speed characteristics when the motor is OFF from this characteristic, the change in the amount of cloth when the amount of cloth is low has a large correlation with the change in A, and the change in the amount of cloth when the amount of cloth is high has a large correlation with the change in D. Therefore, by determining when the amount of cloth is low in the portion A and determining when the amount of cloth is high in the portion D, highly accurate determination can be made.

Setting values for determination are determined experimentally. First, the laundry 10 is loaded into the washing tub 2 (step 41), and when the start switch instructing the start of operation is turned on (step 42), the motor 5 is driven at extremely low rotation speed (step 43). Step 44: The rotation speed detection control unit 16 detects the integrated value of the rotation speed when the motor is turned off at extremely low rotation speeds.
), if this integrated value>Nl (step 45), it is determined that "r is extremely small" (step 52), and if the integrated value<Nl, the process proceeds to the next step 46. Here, it is compared with the next set value N2, and if the integrated value > N2, it is judged as "low" (Step 53)
, if the integrated value<N2, the process proceeds to the next step, and the motor 5 is driven at low rotation speed (step 47). and motor off
The rotational speed at the time is detected (step 48), and based on the integrated value, the next set value MIN2 is determined in the same manner as above. That is, if the integrated value>Ml (step 49), it is determined to be "medium" (step 54), and if the integrated value<Ml, the process proceeds to the next step 50. If the integrated value>N2 in this step 50, it is judged as "large" (step 55), and the integrated value<N2
If so, it is determined that it is overloaded (step 51). After the detection is complete, the machine moves on to the washing process and operates in the same way as a conventional washing machine.

As described above, according to the present invention, the amount of cloth can be detected without water. In addition, since the stirring blade 3 is rotated at a low speed, the laundry 10 rotates together with the stirring blade 3.
It receives almost no friction, and the friction with the washing tub 2 is also small.
In addition, since the detection time can be shortened, there is less fabric damage.

In this embodiment, the amount of cloth was detected by rotating the motor 5 clockwise, pausing, and rotating counterclockwise, but this is necessary in order to eliminate detection variations between clockwise and counterclockwise rotations and to improve detection accuracy. be. However, for example, even if the amount of cloth is detected by driving the motor 5 in the same rotational direction, the detection accuracy is only slightly reduced, but the cloth placement can still be detected.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, the amount of laundry can be determined immediately when the laundry is put into the washing tub.
Based on this, the appropriate water level, amount of detergent, etc. can be displayed.

Therefore, the person doing the laundry does not have to wait 1 to 2 minutes before determining the amount of cloth as in the past, which saves time.

Furthermore, fabric damage can be reduced compared to conventional fabric amount detection devices.

Furthermore, since changes in the rotational speed during the OFF period or ON period of the motor are detected, the amount of cloth can be detected with high accuracy regardless of the amount of cloth.

In addition, since the rotation speed of the motor in the cloth amount detection process is made different between the pre-process and the post-process, it is possible to detect the cloth amount with higher accuracy.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a washing machine including a cloth amount detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a flow chart showing the operation of the washing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is an operation of the washing machine. Figure 4 showing the relationship between motor control and stirring blade rotation at
The figure is a waveform diagram of the power supplied to the motor when controlling the motor of the same washing machine, FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the washing machine in another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between control and true stirring rotation. 1...Outer tank, 2...Washing tub, 3...
... Stirring blade, 4... Speed reducer, 5...
Motor 6...Rotation speed detector, 7...
・Drain valve, 8... Water level detector, 9...
Water supply valve, 10... Laundry, 11... Main control means, 15... Motor control means, 16.
... Rotation speed detection control section, 17 ... Drain valve control section, 18 ... Water level detection control section, 19 ...
...Water valve control unit. Name of agent Shigetaka Awano Haka 1 person; 1 person who transferred Moro, deputy Mo supporter, courageous author, Hikarube 9-shi J Gobe m--Fil (sha)

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A motor for driving an agitation blade provided at the inner bottom of the washing tub, a motor control means for controlling energization of the motor, and a rotation speed detection means for detecting the rotation speed of the agitation blade or the agitation blade drive system. , comprising a cloth amount determination means for determining the amount of cloth based on the output of the rotation speed detection means, and the motor control means operates the stirring blade at a rotation speed lower than the normal rotation speed before supplying water to the washing tub. A cloth amount detection device for a washing machine, which has a cloth amount detection step, and a cloth amount determining means determines the amount of cloth based on an output of a rotation speed detection means in the cloth amount detection step. (2) The cloth amount determining means is configured to detect the
The cloth amount detection device according to claim 1, wherein the cloth amount detection device determines the cloth amount based on the output of the rotation speed detection means during the FF period or the ON period. (3) The cloth amount detection device for a washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the motor control means divides the cloth amount detection step into a front step and a back step, and makes the rotational speed of the motor different between the front step and the back step.