JP2689554B2 - Steam iron - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a steam iron for forcedly supplying water to a vaporization chamber.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, most of the steam irons of this type are those to which a manual pump is applied, and a push button provided on the iron body is used as the manual operation unit. It is also known to use a solenoid instead of a manual operation to automate the operation regardless of the input. FIG. 3 shows an example thereof, which includes an iron body 1 that constitutes a handle, a removable water tank 2, and a vaporization chamber 4 that is partially heated by a heater 3.
The base 3 having the above structure is formed, and the solenoid 7 and the pump mechanism 8 are both housed in the iron body 1.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In such a conventional configuration, since the solenoid 7 and the pump mechanism 8 are both housed in the iron body 1, the iron body 1 inevitably becomes large and the water tank relatively. I had to make 2 smaller. Therefore,
The amount of water that can be continuously used by one ironing is limited, and it is necessary to frequently supply additional water to the water tank 2 during use.

The present invention solves such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a steam iron which is of a solenoid built-in type and allows a large capacity of the water tank to be provided, and which is easy to use.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a base which is heated by a heater and partially forms a vaporization chamber, a water tank for storing water supplied to the vaporization chamber, and an iron body. A pump mechanism for sending water in the water tank to the vaporization chamber and a solenoid for driving the pump mechanism, the pump mechanism including a pump shaft and a pump urged upward by an elastic body. The shaft is composed of a pump chamber that moves up and down by a solenoid, communicates with the lower side surface of the pump chamber, and closes the small hole on the bottom surface with a ball-shaped check valve made of a material slightly larger in specific gravity than water. By doing so, an isolation portion on the water supply side that prevents the backflow of water in the pump chamber into the water tank when the pump shaft descends is formed, and the small hole formed on the bottom surface of the pump chamber communicates with the pump chamber. A check valve that is urged upward by an elastic body and attached to the lower end of the pump shaft and pushed down by a pin that is inserted into the small hole is provided in the water supply side isolation part to open the small hole when the pump shaft descends. The pump mechanism, the water supply side and the water supply side isolation parts are arranged in the water tank, and the solenoid is arranged in the iron body.

Operation With this configuration, it is not necessary to dispose the water guiding path from the water tank and the pump mechanism in the iron body, and it is possible to eliminate the dead space in the iron body caused by the disposition of these components. As a result, the volume of the water tank can be increased, enabling continuous use for a long time.

Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

In the figure, 9 is an iron body and 10 is a water tank.
11 is heated by the heater 12 and partially vaporized in the vaporization chamber 13
It is the base that formed. Reference numeral 14 denotes a pump mechanism formed in the water tank 10, and the pump shaft 15 is reciprocally driven to suck the water in the water tank 10 and send it to the vaporization chamber 13. The pump shaft 15 is always urged upward by the action of the spring 16. Furthermore, this pump shaft 15
A pump packing 17 and a pin 18 are attached to the lower end of the. 19 is a pump chamber in which the packing 17 reciprocates. Reference numeral 20 is a check valve on the water supply side, which is made of a material having a slightly higher specific gravity than water and formed into a ball shape.When the pump packing 17 descends and the pressure in the pump chamber 19 increases, the valve closes due to the action of water pressure. Water tank in the pump room 19 without form
Prevent backflow to 10. 21 is a check valve on the water supply side, which is always urged in the valve closing direction by the action of a spring 22.
When 17 is lowered, it is pushed down by the pin 18 to open the water path toward the vaporization chamber 13.
23 is a solenoid arranged in the iron body 9,
It has a plunger 24 as a drive component. Further, reference numeral 25 is a stopper for preventing the plunger 24 from dropping downward when the water tank 10 is removed as shown in FIG. The plunger 24 is positioned so as to face the upper end of the pump shaft 15.

The operation will be described based on the above configuration. A state in which water is poured into the water tank 10 removed from the iron body 9 is shown in FIG. Here, the pump mechanism 14 provided in the water tank 10 is in a state in which the pump shaft 15 is pushed upward by the action of the spring 16. At this time the pump shaft
The pin 18 at the lower end of 15 is pulled up,
21 is pushed upward by the action of the spring 22, and blocks the water flow path. Therefore, no water leaks from the water tank 10. Therefore, when the water tank 10 is pushed into the iron body 9 from this state, the plunger 24 that is still protruding from a part of the iron body 9 is gradually pushed up along the upper slope of the water tank 10, Eventually, it will come to a position directly above the pump shaft 15.

Here, when the solenoid 12 is operated after the heater 12 is energized and the base 11 reaches a predetermined temperature, the plunger 24 is pushed downward, and the pump shaft 15, that is, the pump packing 17 is also pushed downward. So the first
In the state shown in the figure, the pin 18 opens the check valve 21 and the water supply path of the pump mechanism 14 is opened. So solenoid 23
If you keep this state while energizing the
The water in 10 pushes up the check valve 20 according to the water level in the water tank 10, flows into the pump chamber 19, drops into the vaporization chamber 13 through the path opened by the pin 18, and spouts as steam. To be done. This is a normal steam iron condition.

Next, when the energization of the solenoid 23 is stopped, the downward pressing force of the plunger 24 is lost, so the pump shaft 15, that is, the pump packing 17, is pushed upward by the action of the spring 16.
Along with this, the water in the water tank 10 passes through the check valve 20 and is drawn into the pump chamber 19. However, in this state, the pin
Since 18 is raised, the check valve 21 blocks the water path and cannot generate steam. That is, it is a state of a dry iron.

Further, when energization of the solenoid 23 is started in a state where the pump chamber 19 is filled with water, the plunger 24 is pushed down, the pump shaft 15 is also lowered, and the pin
18 pushes down the check valve 21 to open the water path,
The water in 19 is vigorously ejected into the vaporization chamber 13 according to the descending speed of the pump shaft 15. This is the so-called power shot or increased steam. At this time, the check valve 20 is closed by the water pressure in the pump chamber 19, so
The water inside does not flow back into the water tank 10.

When the water tank 10 is removed from the iron body 9 and the power is turned off, the plunger of the solenoid 23
Although 24 falls downward due to its own weight, it does not protrude from the iron body 9 beyond a predetermined length by the action of the stopper 25.

Further, in the embodiment, the solenoid 23 is arranged in the iron body 9 in the vertical direction.
It is also possible to dispose them horizontally, and in that case, the operation direction may be changed by using a crank mechanism or the like. Further, in the embodiment, an example using a push-type solenoid is shown, but a suction-type solenoid may be used. In that case,
The direction of force may be reversed by using a crank or the like.

As described above, according to the present invention, in a steam iron with a built-in solenoid, the plunger of the solenoid and the pump shaft are structurally separated, the solenoid is arranged in the iron body, and the pump mechanism is arranged in the water tank. By
The capacity of the water tank can be significantly increased, and when ironing with steam, ironing can be performed continuously for a long time, greatly improving usability. . Furthermore, since the pump mechanism is pierced in the water tank, the structure is simple without the need for a complicated water guiding path as in the past, which is extremely convenient in manufacturing.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part of a steam iron according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view showing a state in which a water tank is removed from the iron body, and FIG. 3 is a conventional steam iron. FIG. 9: iron body, 10: water tank, 11: base,
12 ... Heater, 13 ... Vaporization chamber, 14 ... Pump mechanism, 23 ...
…solenoid.

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Seiichi Nakata 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-62-117600 (JP, A) JP-A-62-120899 ( JP, A) JP 62-218000 (JP, A) Actually opened 62-151899 (JP, U) Actually opened 62-151900 (JP, U)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A base which is heated by a heater and partially forms a vaporization chamber, a water tank for storing water to be supplied to the vaporization chamber, an iron body, and a water tank for feeding the water in the water tank to the vaporization chamber. A pump mechanism and a solenoid for driving the pump mechanism are provided, and the pump mechanism includes a pump shaft biased upward by an elastic body and a pump chamber in which the pump shaft moves up and down by the solenoid. A water tank inside the pump chamber when the pump shaft descends by closing the small hole on the bottom with a ball-shaped check valve that communicates with the lower side of the pump chamber and is made of a material having a specific gravity slightly higher than that of water. An isolation part on the water supply side that prevents backflow into the inside is formed, and a small hole formed on the bottom surface of the pump chamber urges the isolation part on the water supply side that communicates with the pump chamber upward by an elastic body. Pump shaft attached to the lower end the to the small holes at the pump shaft descends provided a check valve is depressed by the inserted pin small hole opened and the pump mechanism,
A steam iron in which the water supply side and water supply side isolation parts are inside the water tank, and the solenoid is arranged in the iron body.