JP4772471B2 - Clothes dryer - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a clothes dryer for drying clothes using a heat pump.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, clothes dryers that use a heat pump to dry clothes are known. This is an energy that collects (dehumidifies) the moisture generated when drying clothes in an evaporator, converts the latent heat collected in the fold into a high-temperature refrigerant state by a compressor, and heats the air by a condenser. Reuse. By doing so, except that there is a slight heat loss outside, it can be reused without losing almost any energy. Therefore, efficient drying can be realized, and the operation time can be shortened.

In this case, the drying operation may be interrupted by the user's operation (especially operation of the temporary stop switch) or the occurrence of an abnormality. At that time, the conventional operation is shown in FIG. As shown at a) at time t ₁ , the rotating tank that accommodates and rotates the clothing is stopped, the compressor of the heat pump is stopped, and the ventilation path in which the evaporator and the condenser of the heat pump are arranged The blower that circulates the air in the rotary tank through the air was also stopped (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2005-168547 A

As described above, when the drying operation is interrupted, the compressor of the heat pump is stopped, and the blower that circulates the air in the rotary tank through the ventilation path in which the evaporator and the condenser of the heat pump are also stopped. than the conventional one has been allowed to, by which they are stopped while the temperature of the condenser is high, as shown in (b) of FIG. 11, the internal pressure of the cycle piping of the heat pump is rapidly increased, the pipe There was a risk of causing damage.
FIG. 11 (c) shows the change in the humidity of the ventilation path when the drying operation is interrupted, and FIG. 11 (d) shows the change in the amount of water (drain water) that has fallen due to condensation in the evaporator. Both are rising rapidly to a high level.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. Therefore, the object of the present invention is to suppress a sudden increase in the internal pressure of the cycle pipe of the heat pump when the drying operation is interrupted. It is in providing the clothes dryer which can be lost.

In order to achieve the above object, the clothes dryer of the present invention comprises a rotating tub, an air passage, and a drive device for rotating the rotating tub, and circulates air in the rotating tub through the air passage. In a fan that performs a drying operation for drying clothes, including a blower to be used, and a heat pump that constitutes a refrigeration cycle by disposing an evaporator and a condenser in the ventilation path and connecting them to a compressor,
During the interruption of the drying operation by the operation of the use for users, after stopping the compressor of the heat pump also with so as to create moving the blower, the operation of the blower, put clothes inside the rotation tub the restraint of the closed state of the door for opening and closing the clothes inlet for has to be stopped when it is released you characterized.

According to the above means , when the drying operation is interrupted by the user's operation, the air in the rotating tank is circulated through the ventilation path in which the evaporator and condenser of the heat pump are disposed even after the compressor of the heat pump is stopped. be to create dynamic blower to the temperature of the condenser because lowered by the air flow, it is suppressed rapid rise in the internal pressure of the cycle piping of the heat pump is, as a result, fear of damage of the piping is eliminated.
Further, in this case, the continuous operation of the blower causes the water vapor remaining in the air circulation path to be carried to the evaporator and cooled by the remaining cooling heat, and dehumidification is performed. I can not.
Further, in this case, the blower is stopped when the restraint of the closed state of the door is released, so that the blower can be turned on even if the door is opened (even if the circulating air comes out from the clothing input port). It is possible to avoid the waste of continued operation, that is, the inability to obtain the above-described effects.

Hereinafter, the present invention is applied to a washing / drying machine, and one example ( one embodiment) thereof will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, FIG. 2 shows the entire washing and drying machine as viewed from the front, and has a door 2 at the center of the front surface of the outer box 1. The door 2 opens and closes a clothing insertion opening (not shown) formed in the center of the front surface of the outer box 1. In addition, a push button 3 for opening the door 2 is opened on the front surface of the outer box 1. An operation panel 4 and a detergent charging case 5 are provided.

  Further, on the back side (inward) of the front portion of the outer box 1, a door switch 6 which is a detecting means for detecting opening and closing of the door 2, a lock mechanism 7 for restraining the door 2 in a closed state, and the lock mechanism. 7 is provided with a lock switch 8 serving as a detecting means for detecting the restraint and the restraint release of the door 2, and the push button 3 is linked to the lock mechanism 7, and when the push button 3 is pressed, the lock mechanism The restraint of the door 2 by 7 is released.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a water tank 9 is housed in the front and rear (in a direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet) horizontal axis state and is supported by a pair of left and right suspensions 10 so as to be swingable. In the water tank 9, the drum 11 is similarly accommodated and supported in a horizontal axis state. The drum 11 is a rotating tank, and a motor 12 that is a driving device for rotating the drum 11 is attached to the back of the water tank 9. In addition, clothes are input to the drum 11 from the clothes input port.

  On the other hand, a ventilation case 13 is disposed in the lower part of the outer box 1, and a leading end portion of the suction side duct 15 is connected to an inlet portion 14 of the ventilation case 13. The base end portion of the suction side duct 15 faces the drum 11 from the rear part of the water tank 9. With this configuration, the air in the drum 11 enters the suction side duct 15 and passes through the suction side duct 15 to enter the ventilation case 13. Has been led to.

  On the other hand, a proximal end portion of the discharge side duct 17 is connected to the outlet portion 16 of the ventilation case 13, and a distal end portion of the discharge side duct 17 faces the drum 11 from the front portion of the water tank 9. With this configuration, air that has passed through the ventilation case 13 is guided into the drum 11 through the discharge side duct 17, and in the above suction side duct 15, ventilation case 13, and discharge side duct 17, The ventilation path 18 which lets the air in 11 pass is comprised.

  Thus, the evaporator 19, the condenser 20, and the blower 21 are arranged in this order from the inlet 14 side to the outlet 16 side inside the ventilation case 13 in the ventilation path 18. Among them, the evaporator 19 and the condenser 20 are, for example, a rotary compressor 23 disposed at a position apart from the ventilation case 13 and surrounded by a soundproof case 22, and a throttle valve shown in FIG. In this case, the heat pump 25 is composed of the electronic throttle valve 24). In this heat pump 25, the refrigerant flows in the order of the compressor 23-condenser 20-throttle valve 24-evaporator 19-compressor 23. A refrigeration cycle is configured by connecting the pipes 26, and a refrigerant (not shown) is sealed in the refrigeration cycle.

The evaporator 19 is provided with a first temperature sensor 27 for detecting the temperature thereof, and the compressor 23 is provided with a second temperature sensor 28 for detecting the temperature of the refrigerant suction port. In addition, a third temperature sensor 29 for detecting the temperature of the refrigerant discharge port is provided.
FIG. 5 shows a water storage tank 30 provided directly below the evaporator 19 and the condenser 20 in the ventilation case 13 or outside the ventilation case 13. The water storage tank 30 is provided with a drainage pump 31 as a drainage device. The water accumulated in the water storage tank 30 is discharged to the outside by the drain pump 31 through the drain tube 32.

  FIG. 6 shows a control device 33. The control device 33 is arranged inside the outer box 1 and is composed of, for example, a microcomputer, and controls the overall operation of the washing / drying machine. It is designed to function as a means. The control device 33 receives various operation signals from an operation unit 34 including various operation switches in the operation panel 4 for a user to perform operations related to the operation of the washing / drying machine, and the door switch 6, a door opening detection signal and a door closing detection signal are input, and further, a lock detection signal and an unlock detection signal are input from the lock switch 8, and a water level provided to detect the water level in the water tank 9. A water level detection signal is input from the sensor 35, and each temperature detection signal is input from each of the first to third temperature sensors 27 to 29. The various operation switches of the operation panel 4 include a temporary stop switch (not shown in detail) as an operation switch for the user to interrupt the operation.

  Thus, the control device 33 includes a water supply valve 36 provided to supply water into the water tank 9 (inside the drum 11), and a motor for driving the drum 11 based on those inputs and a control program stored in advance. 12. The drain valve 37 provided so as to drain from the water tank 9 (the drum 11), the compressor 23, the blower 21, and the throttle valve 24 are driven and controlled via a drive circuit 38.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.
In the thing of the said structure, if a standard driving | running course is selected by the operation part 34, the control apparatus 33 will start a washing | cleaning (washing and rinsing) driving | operation first. In this washing operation, an operation of supplying water into the water tub 9 is performed by the water supply valve 36, and then the motor 12 is operated to rotate the drum 11 alternately in both forward and reverse directions at a low speed.
When the washing operation is completed, the dehydration operation is then started. In this dehydration operation, after the water in the water tank 9 is discharged, an operation of rotating the drum 11 in one direction at a high speed is performed. Thereby, the clothes (laundry) in the drum 11 are centrifugally dehydrated.

  When the dehydration operation is completed, the drying operation is started next. In this drying operation, the air inside the drum 11 causes the suction side duct 15, the ventilation case 13, and the discharge side duct 17 to be blown by operating the blower 21 while rotating the drum 11 in both forward and reverse directions at a low speed. Passing through in sequence, that is, circulation returning to the drum 11 through the ventilation path 18 is performed.

  Further, at this time, the compressor 23 is operated by the heat pump 25 to compress the refrigerant into a high-temperature / high-pressure refrigerant (gas), and the high-temperature / high-pressure refrigerant flows into the condenser 20, Exchange heat with air. As a result, the air in the ventilation case 13 is heated, and conversely, the temperature of the refrigerant is lowered and liquefied. The liquefied refrigerant then passes through the throttle valve 24 and is decompressed, and then flows into the evaporator 19 and vaporizes. Thereby, the evaporator 19 cools the air in the ventilation case 13. Then, the refrigerant that has passed through the evaporator 19 returns to the compressor 23.

As a result, the air that has flowed from the drum 11 into the ventilation case 13 through the suction duct 15 is cooled by the evaporator 19 and dehumidified, and then heated by the condenser 20 to be warmed. Then, the warm air is supplied into the drum 11 through the discharge side duct 17.
The warm air supplied into the drum 11 is deprived of moisture by evaporating moisture from the clothing, and then flows into the ventilation case 13 through the suction side duct 15.
Thus, air circulates between the ventilation case 13 in which the evaporator 19 and the condenser 20 are disposed and the drum 11, whereby the clothes in the drum 11 are gradually dried.

Now, during the drying operation, when the operation is interrupted by the user's operation (especially the operation of the temporary stop switch), in the above configuration, as shown in FIG. While the drum 11 is stopped at time t ₁ ) and the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 is stopped, the blower 21 is continuously operated and stopped after a predetermined time (time t ₂ ). And further, that after a predetermined time by operating the drain pump 31 (time t _3), the drain pump 31 is stopped in the predetermined time after (time t _4).

Among these, even after the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 is stopped, the temperature of the condenser 20 is lowered by the air flow continuously generated as described above by continuously operating the blower 21. Thus, as shown in FIG. 1B, a rapid increase in the internal pressure of the cycle piping of the heat pump 25 is suppressed, and the risk of damage to the piping can be eliminated.
Further, by continuing the operation of the blower 21 after the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 is stopped, the water vapor remaining in the air circulation path of the drum 11 and the ventilation path 18 is carried to the evaporator 19 and cooled by the residual cooling heat thereof. And dehumidification is performed. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1 (c), the humidity of the air circulation path is also lowered, so that the clothes are not moistened by the remaining water vapor.

Furthermore, the dew condensation water remaining in the evaporator 19 and the water newly generated by dew condensation fall and accumulate in the water storage tank 30 until the drainage pump 31 is activated, but if the drainage pump 31 is activated, Since it is discharged from the water storage tank 30, as shown in FIG. 1 (d), a large amount does not remain, and at the next operation such as by restarting, water that is condensed and falls in the evaporator 19 is added. However, it is possible to prevent the water storage tank 30 from overflowing.
However, the operation of the drain pump 31 is not necessarily required, and may be executed as necessary.

On the other hand, the continuous operation of the blower 21 when the drying operation is interrupted by the user's operation is stopped when the door 2 is opened instead of being stopped for a predetermined time as described above. Also good. In this case, the opening of the door 2 is detected by the door switch 6, and the control device 33 receives the detection signal and stops the operation of the blower 21.
By doing in this way, even if the door 2 is opened (even if the circulating air comes out from the clothing inlet), it is not necessary to continue operating the blower 21, that is, the above-described effects cannot be obtained. Can be avoided.

Further, the continuous operation of the blower 21 when the drying operation is interrupted by the user's operation is stopped when the restriction of the closed state of the door 2 is released instead of being stopped for a predetermined time as described above. You may make it let it. In this case, the release of the restriction of the closed state of the door 2 is detected by the lock switch 8, and the control device 33 receives the detection signal and stops the operation of the blower 21.
Even in this case, as described above, it is possible to avoid wasteful operation of the blower 21 even when the door 2 is opened.

7 to 10 show reference examples ( first to fourth reference examples ), and the same parts as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. Only the different parts will be described.

[First Reference Example]
In the first reference example shown in FIG. 7, when the drying operation is interrupted by the user's operation, the drum 11 is stopped immediately (time t ₁ ) as shown in FIG. No. 23 continues to operate with a reduced capacity, and stops after a predetermined time (time t ₅ ). In this case, the compressor 23 is a rotary type, and the reduction in capacity is achieved by reducing the rotation speed of the drive motor from 60 rotations per second to 30 rotations per second. In this case, the blower 21 is also continuously operated and stopped after a predetermined time (time t ′ ₁ ) for a short time (for example, several tens of seconds). Further, the predetermined time after actuating the drainage pump 31 (time t _3), the drain pump 31 is stopped in the predetermined time after (time t _4). Further, the drain pump 31 is operated again after the predetermined time (time t ′ ₂ ), and the drain pump 31 is stopped after the predetermined time (time t ′ ₃ ).

Among these, by reducing the capacity of the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 and continuing the operation of the compressor 23 for a predetermined time, the compressor 23 continues to operate by reducing the discharge pressure. Thus, as shown in (b), the rapid increase in the internal pressure of the cycle pipe of the heat pump 25 is suppressed, and as a result, the possibility of damage to the pipe can be eliminated.
Further, in this case, if the operation of the compressor 23 is continued for a predetermined time even if the capacity of the compressor 23 is reduced, the operation of the compressor 23 is resumed while the operation is continued. There is also an advantage that can be raised quickly and effective operation can be performed quickly.

In addition, in this case, the blower 21 also keeps operating for a predetermined time, whereby the temperature of the condenser 20 is lowered by the air flow, and the internal pressure of the cycle piping of the heat pump 25 is rapidly increased as in the above embodiment. Therefore, the risk of damage to the piping can be further eliminated. Furthermore, since the water vapor remaining in the air circulation path is carried to the evaporator 19 by the continuous operation of the blower 21 and dehumidification is performed by the residual cooling heat thereof, as shown in (c), the humidity of the air circulation path is also reduced. It can be lowered and the clothes can be prevented from getting wet with the remaining water vapor.

In this case, too, the condensed water (drain water) that has fallen from the evaporator 19 and accumulated in the water storage tank 30 can be discharged by the operation of the drainage pump 31, so that a large amount of condensed water does not remain as shown in (d). In the next operation such as by restarting, even if water that is condensed and falls in the evaporator 19 is added, the water storage tank 30 can be prevented from overflowing.
However, the operation of the drain pump 31 is not necessarily required in this case, and may be executed as necessary.

  Further, in this case, considering that the interruption of the drying operation is due to the user's operation (especially the operation of the temporary stop switch) and the time until the operation is restarted is short, the continuous operation of the blower 21 is performed in a short time. I try to stop it. This prevents the blower 21 from being operated even when the door 2 is opened.

[ Second Reference Example]
In the second reference example shown in FIG. 8, when the drying operation is interrupted by the user's operation, the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 is reduced in capacity as described above, and the compressor 23 is continuously operated. In what is stopped at (time t ₅ ), the blower 21 is stopped together with the drum 11 at the time (t ₁ ) when the drying operation is interrupted.
In this case, even if the drying operation is interrupted, if the operation continues to the blower 21 as well as the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25, it is difficult for the user to recognize the interruption of the drying operation. Easy to do.

[ Third reference example]
In the third reference example shown in FIG. 9, when the drying operation is interrupted due to the occurrence of some abnormality, the drum 11 is stopped immediately (time t ₁ ) as shown in (a) (similar to the above embodiment). At the same time, the compressor 23 of the heat pump 25 is stopped, but the blower 21 is continuously operated and stopped after a predetermined time (time t ₂ ).

In the thing of the said structure, when some abnormality generate | occur | produces in the middle of the driving | operation including drying operation, the control apparatus 33 will judge that and will interrupt | operate an operation | movement. When the operation is interrupted in that way during the drying operation, the drum 11, the compressor 23, and the blower 21 are controlled as described above, whereby the same effects as the above-described embodiment can be obtained.
In this case as well, the blower 21 may be stopped when the door 2 is opened or when the closed state of the door 2 is released.

[ Fourth Reference Example]
In the fourth reference example shown in FIG. 10, as shown in FIG. 10A, the drainage pump 31 is activated and accumulated in the water storage tank 30 at the start of the drying operation (time t ″ _{1 to} t ″ ₂ ). Water is discharged outside the machine.
In this way, even when a large amount of water is accumulated in the water storage tank 30 after a long time has passed since the end of the previous operation, it can be discharged at the start of the next drying operation. Even if water accumulates in the tank 30, the problem of overflow from the storage tank 30 does not occur, as can be seen by not exceeding the overflow water level in (b).

  Further, the water storage tank 30 has a small amount of change in the water storage water level because it widely receives water falling from the evaporator 19. For this reason, it is difficult or impossible to detect the change in the water level with a sensor. In consideration of this, the drain pump 31 is operated periodically, such as once every 30 minutes, to drain the water during the drying operation. I have to. In this case, the drying operation may be terminated when drainage by the drainage pump 31 is executed, or may be terminated without being performed, and if it is terminated without being performed, the overflow water level in (b) is exceeded. As can be seen, there is a possibility of overflow from the water storage tank 30 described above.

Therefore, as described above, the drainage pump 31 is operated at the start of the drying operation so as to drain the water, whereby the operation of the drainage pump 31 is controlled by a time limit irrespective of the water level sensor that detects the water level of the water storage tank. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the possibility of overflow from the water storage tank 30 and to use it comfortably.
In this case, the drainage pump 31 is operated immediately before the start of the drying operation. Alternatively, it may be performed in synchronization with the start or immediately after the start.

  In addition, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings. In particular, the entire machine is not limited to the above-described washing / drying machine having both washing and drying functions, only the drying function. The structure is not limited to the horizontal axis type having the above-mentioned drum (rotary tank) in the horizontal axis shape, and has a bottomed cylindrical rotary tank in the vertical axis shape. The vertical axis may be used, and in short, it can be implemented with appropriate modifications within a range not departing from the gist.

It is a figure which shows one Example of this invention, (a) is a time chart of the related components at the time of drying operation interruption, (b) is a figure which shows the change of the pressure in the cycle piping of a heat pump, (c) is a ventilation path. The figure which shows the change of humidity, (d) is the figure which shows the change of the quantity of drain water due to the dew condensation with the evaporator Front view of washer / dryer Longitudinal sectional view of the washer / dryer Cycle diagram of heat pump Front view of the drain water treatment part Electrical configuration block diagram FIG. 1 equivalent diagram showing a first reference example FIG. 1 (a) equivalent diagram showing a second reference example FIG. 1 equivalent diagram showing a third reference example FIGS. 1A and 1D showing the fifth reference example 1 equivalent diagram showing a conventional example

Explanation of symbols

  In the drawings, 2 is a door, 7 is a lock mechanism, 11 is a drum (rotary tank), 12 is a motor (drive device), 18 is a ventilation path, 19 is an evaporator, 20 is a condenser, 21 is a blower, and 23 is a compression , 25 is a heat pump, and 33 is a control device.

Claims (1)

A rotating tank, a ventilation path, and a drive device that rotates the rotating tank,
A blower that circulates air in the rotary tank through the ventilation path;
A heat pump that constitutes a refrigeration cycle by disposing an evaporator and a condenser in the ventilation path and connecting them to a compressor,
In what performs the drying operation to dry clothes,
During the drying operation interrupt by the user's operation after stopping the compressor of the heat pump also with so as to create moving the blower, the operation of the blower, to put the clothes inside the rotation tub A clothes dryer characterized by being stopped when the restraint of the closed state of the door that opens and closes the clothes input opening is released .

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