JPH09276599A - Clothes dryer control method - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Problem] The exhaust method has a difference in characteristics such as lower temperature and humidity in the drum than the dehumidifying method, and problems such as overdrying occur with the same drying control method. Will end up. SOLUTION: While a dryer that switches between a dehumidifying system and an exhaust system is performing a drying operation, a drying operation of a clothing is continued for a predetermined time after a means for detecting the dryness of a clothes detects a predetermined drying degree. When the drying is completed, this predetermined time is set individually for the dehumidifying method and the exhaust method. [Effect] The clothes can be dried in an optimum dry state regardless of the dehumidifying method and the exhaust method, and the performance of the dryer can be improved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clothes dryer,
In particular, the present invention relates to a method for controlling a clothes dryer for the purpose of improving drying performance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art At present, most domestic clothes dryers have a dehumidifying system in which moist air is circulated in the machine and returned to water by a heat exchanger to be condensed so that moisture is not discharged outside the machine.

However, the heat exchanger mounted on the rotary drum type clothes dryer has a limit in terms of price and space,
It had weaknesses such as poorer drying efficiency, longer drying time, and higher drying cost than the exhaust type dryer.

Further, the exhaust type clothes dryer which exhausts the circulating air to the outside has a good drying efficiency and a shorter drying time than the dehumidifying system. However, when clothes containing a large amount of moisture after selection are dried indoors. However, it is not used so much because it has a weak point that it becomes damp inside.

In order to solve these problems, a clothes dryer having a means for switching the drying method, such as a dehumidifying method for drying wet clothes after washing and an exhaust method for almost dry clothes is used. Is proposed.

[0006]

However, in such a clothes dryer, when clothes are dried by selecting an exhaust system in which the circulating air is exhausted from the opening to the outside of the machine, the hot and humid circulation in the drum is circulated. Since air exchanges with the outside air through the opening, differences in characteristics such as lower temperature and humidity in the drum than in the dehumidification method occur, and problems such as overdrying occur with the same drying control method. .

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a clothes dryer in which the drying time of the exhaust method is separately provided and the drying is completed in the optimum dry state in both the exhaust method and the dehumidifying method.

[0008]

The feature of the present invention is that the means for detecting the degree of dryness of clothes detects the predetermined degree of dryness when the dryer for switching between the dehumidifying system and the exhaust system is in the dry operation. After that, in the case where the drying operation is continued for a predetermined time and the drying is completed, the predetermined time is set individually for the dehumidifying system and the exhaust system.

[0009]

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

FIG. 1 shows the structure of a clothes dryer according to the present invention which is capable of drying by both dehumidification and exhaust.

Reference numeral 1 is an outer frame. Inside the outer frame 1, a drum 6, which is a drying chamber, has a front side supported by a drum support 13 attached to the front front surface of the outer frame 1 and a rear side supported by a drum fan. It is rotatably supported on the body 14.

Reference numeral 2 is a door which covers the clothes inlet 3 and is openable and closable, and reference numeral 4 is a driving operation section.

As shown in FIG. 2, reference numeral 5 is a detection means 21 for driving and controlling the AC motor 11 and the heater 7 to detect the open / closed state of the open / close lid, a humidity sensor 22, and a thermistor arranged on the reference numeral 5. It is a control device which is composed of a microcomputer which takes in a signal from the device through a detection circuit.

Reference numeral 8 is an air blower (heat exchange fan) for sending the hot air generated by the heater 7 into the drum 6.

The blower device (heat exchange fan) 8 also serves as a heat exchanger, and an AC motor 11 is provided via a drum belt 9 and a fan belt 10 for rotationally driving the blower device (heat exchange fan) 8 and the drum 6. It is connected to the.

Reference numeral 12 is a fan casing, which is connected to a drum support 13 via a circulation duct 17. An exhaust port 17-2 communicating with the outside of the machine is provided at the front part of the circulation duct 17, and an opening / closing lid 19 which can be opened and closed manually and a detection means 2 for detecting the open / closed state of the opening / closing lid are provided at the exhaust port 17-2.
1 is provided.

When operating the clothes dryer constructed as described above, first, the door 2 is opened and clothes requiring drying are put into the drum 6 through the clothes inlet 3, the door 2 is closed, and the clothes are washed with a washing machine. When the clothes are dried, after confirming that the opening / closing lid 19 is closed, the dehumidifying course is selected by the operation operating unit 4 and the operation is started.

When the operation is started, as shown in FIG. 1, the AC motor 11 and the heater 7 are energized, and the blower device (heat exchange fan) 8 which also functions as the drum 6 and the heat exchanger starts to rotate until the drying is completed. Drive to rotate.

Here, the moisture evaporated from the clothes passes through the lint collecting device 15 together with the circulating wind, passes through the drum exhaust port 6-1 on the rear wall of the drum, and flows into the circulation side of the fan casing 12. .

Outside air flows into the cooling side of the fan casing 12 from the back plate intake port 16-1 of the back plate 16 and is exhausted from the back plate exhaust port 16-2.

At the outer peripheral portion of the air blower (heat exchanger fan) 8, the labyrinth seal portion with the partition plate divides the circulating air and the cooling air into and out of the air blower (heat exchanger fan). On the front and back sides of the fan casing 8, heat is exchanged between the circulation side and the cooling side of the fan casing 12, and the moisture contained in the circulating air is condensed to become water, and the fan casing discharge port 1
2-1 flows into the circulation duct 17 and drains 17-1
It is further discharged to the outside of the machine, and a series of drying operations as a dehumidifying system is continued.

Next, when the clothes which are dried by being dried outside are dried, the door 2 is first opened and the clothes which need to be dried are put into the drum 6 through the clothes inlet 3 and the door 2 is closed to open and close the lid 19.
Is manually opened, and the operation course 4 is used to select an exhaust course to start the operation.

When the operation is started, as shown in FIG. 1, the AC motor 11 and the heater 7 are energized, and the air blower (heat exchange fan) 8 having both the drum 6 and the heat exchanger starts to rotate and starts to be dried. Drive to rotate.

Here, the moisture evaporated from the clothes passes through the lint collecting device 15 together with the circulating wind, passes through the drum exhaust port 16-1 on the rear wall of the drum, and flows into the circulation side of the fan casing 12. .

Further, outside air flows into the cooling side of the fan casing 12 from the back plate intake port 16-1 of the back plate 16 and is exhausted from the back plate exhaust port 16-2.

At the outer peripheral portion of the air blower (heat exchanger fan) 8, the labyrinth seal portion with the partition plate divides the circulating air and the cooling air into and out of the air blower (heat exchanger fan). In the front and back of FIG. 8, heat is exchanged between the circulation side and the cooling side of the fan casing 12 and a part of the moisture contained in the circulating air is condensed and becomes water, which flows into the circulation duct 17 from the fan casing discharge port 12-1. , Drain 1
Drained from 7-1 to the outside of the aircraft.

Most of the moisture contained in the circulating air is discharged from the exhaust port 17-2 of the circulation duct 17 to the outside of the machine. The outside air is taken in by replacing only the exhausted portion, and a series of exhausting type drying operation is performed.

When the drying operation is started as described above, the temperature and humidity in the drum 6 rise as shown in FIG. 4, but in the exhaust course in which the open / close lid 19 is opened, the exhaust port 17- Since the warm and moist circulating air is exchanged with the outside air at 2, there is a difference in characteristics such that the temperature inside the drum 6 and the temperature become lower than when operating in the dehumidifying course. Therefore, as a method of controlling the drying operation, first, the temperature change TH1 during a certain time t1 from the start of the operation is detected by using a thermistor arranged on the control device 5, and the amount of cloth is determined.

Next, the humidity sensor 22 is detected, and the drying is continued until a constant humidity d2 is detected. Constant humidity d
When 2 is detected, if the course set at the start of operation is the dehumidifying course, the amount of cloth and the humidity previously obtained using the table for the dehumidifying course and the drying from the time td at which the humidity d1 changes to d2 to the end of drying The operation time is obtained, and the drying operation is continued at the obtained constant time, and then the blowing operation is performed to cool the clothes and the entire drying process is completed.

Further, when the course set at the start of operation is the exhaust course, when the constant humidity d2 is detected, the cloth amount and the humidity d1 previously obtained using the table for the exhaust course are obtained.
From the time td that changes from 1 to d2 to the end of drying, the drying operation is continued at the obtained constant time,
After that, a blowing operation is performed to cool the clothes and the entire drying process is completed. As described above, in the exhaust course, the drying operation time is shorter than that in the dehumidification course.

These specific control flows are described in detail in FIG.

If the opening / closing lid detecting means 21 is used,
It is not necessary to select the exhaust or dehumidification course simply by opening and closing the opening / closing lid when starting the operation shown in Fig. 3. If the opening / closing lid is open, the operating time is automatically obtained from the exhaust system table and drying is performed. If the open / close lid is closed, the operation can be performed by obtaining the operation time from the dehumidifying system table.

According to this method, it is not necessary to select a course for the exhaust system, and by simply opening the opening / closing lid, it is possible to operate even in the standard course with the drying time of the exhaust system, so there is no mistake in opening / closing the opening / closing lid. The reliability of the drying performance is improved, and the operation by the customer becomes easy.

[0034]

As described above, in the clothes dryer capable of switching between the dehumidifying method and the exhaust method, the time for finishing the drying can be changed by the operation time of the dehumidifying method and the operating time of the exhaust method. The clothes can be dried in an optimum dry state regardless of the dehumidifying method and the exhaust method.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a clothes dryer having an opening capable of switching between an exhaust system and a dehumidifying system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control unit.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of control for executing a drying operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a state change diagram of air (temperature and humidity) at the drum outlet.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Outer frame, 4 ... Operation part, 5 ... Control device, 6 ... Drying drum intake port, 7 ... Heater, 8 ... Blower, 11 ... AC motor, 17 ... Circulation duct, 17-1 ... Drainage port, 17- 2 ...
Exhaust port, 19 ... Open / close lid, 21 ... Manual open / close lid detection means,
22 ... Humidity sensor.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tsuneshi Komatsu 1-1-1 Higashitaga-cho, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Pref.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A drum rotatably supported in an outer frame,
A heater and a blower for sending warm air into the drum, a transmission and an electric motor for driving the blower and the drum, means for detecting the dryness of clothes, and circulating air inside or outside the machine. In a clothes dryer with an openable and closable opening that can be exhausted to the outside, clothes can be dried when the circulating air is exhausted outside the machine to dry and when the circulating air is circulated inside the machine to dry. A method for controlling a clothes dryer, characterized in that a drying time from the detection of the occurrence to the automatic stop is individually set. 2. The clothes drying method according to claim 1, wherein opening / closing of an opening for exhausting the circulating air to the outside of the machine is detected to automatically change the drying time after detecting the drying of the clothes. Control method.