JP7589082B2 - Clothes Dryer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a clothes dryer that dries wet clothes.

A known clothes drying device is equipped with a drying chamber that can accommodate clothes, a drying air supply section that can supply drying air to the drying chamber, and an exhaust section that exhausts the air in the drying chamber to the outside (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In the clothes drying device described in Patent Document 1, the internal space of a rotating drum that can be freely rotated is provided as a drying chamber. As a result, the rotating drum is rotated to move the clothes within the drying chamber without stopping them in a fixed position, thereby efficiently drying the clothes.

The air inside the drying chamber contains dust and other particles, and lint and other debris is generated from the clothes being moved inside the drying chamber. Therefore, a filter is placed at the point where the air exhausted from the drying chamber to the outside passes through, and this filter removes foreign matter such as lint and dust.

JP 2020-92754 A

In the clothes drying device described in Patent Document 1, a filter is used to remove foreign matter such as lint and dust contained in the air exhausted from the drying chamber. However, if foreign matter accumulates on the filter, it can cause exhaust resistance and lead to inconveniences such as longer drying times, so it is necessary to clean (remove) any foreign matter adhering to the filter.

However, the cleaning task of removing foreign matter from the filter requires the user to manually scrape off any foreign matter adhering to the filter, which is a very time-consuming task. In particular, when the clothes dryer is installed on top of the washing machine, the clothes dryer is installed at a high position, making it difficult for the user to manually scrape off any foreign matter adhering to the filter.

In view of this situation, the main objective of the present invention is to provide a clothes dryer that can simplify the cleaning process for removing foreign matter adhering to the filter.

The first characteristic feature of the present invention is that it is provided with a drying chamber capable of storing clothes, a drying air supply section capable of supplying drying air to the drying chamber, an exhaust section for exhausting the air in the drying chamber to the outside, a filter disposed at a position through which the air exhausted from the drying chamber passes, and a cleaning section capable of carrying out a cleaning operation for collecting foreign matter adhering to the filter and storing it in a foreign matter storage section.

According to this configuration, a cleaning unit is provided that can perform a cleaning operation to collect foreign matter adhering to the filter and store it in the foreign matter storage section, so that the cleaning unit can remove foreign matter adhering to the filter from the filter and store it in the foreign matter storage section without the need to manually scrape off the foreign matter adhering to the filter. This allows the user to remove the foreign matter from the filter simply by taking out the foreign matter stored in the foreign matter storage section and discarding it, simplifying the cleaning operation of removing foreign matter adhering to the filter.

A second characteristic configuration of the present invention is a control unit that controls the operating states of the drying air supply unit, the exhaust unit, and the cleaning unit,
The control unit is configured to freely execute a drying operation in which the drying air supply unit and the exhaust unit are operated to dry the clothes stored in the drying chamber, and a filter cleaning operation in which, after the drying operation is completed, the cleaning unit is operated to perform cleaning, and foreign matter adhering to the filter is collected and stored in a foreign matter storage unit.

Foreign matter such as lint and dust adheres to the filter during the drying operation in which the clothes in the drying chamber are dried. Therefore, with this configuration, the control unit executes the filter cleaning operation, and the work of removing foreign matter from the filter can be performed after the drying operation is completed. This makes it possible to remove foreign matter before the amount of foreign matter adhering to the filter increases, and allows the cleaning operation of the cleaning unit to be performed at the appropriate time.

The third characteristic feature of the present invention is that a rotating drum that can be freely rotated is provided, the internal space of the rotating drum is provided as the drying chamber, a communication part is provided in a fixed state on the air exhaust side of the drying chamber that communicates with the outside of the rotating drum and through which air from the drying chamber flows, and the filter is disposed in the communication part.

According to this configuration, the internal space of the rotating drum is provided as a drying chamber, so that the clothes can be moved around the drying chamber without being stopped in a fixed position, allowing the clothes to be dried efficiently. However, for example, if the filter is arranged so that it rotates integrally with the rotating drum, the shape and configuration of the filter will be limited by the shape and configuration of the rotating drum.

Therefore, according to this configuration, a communication part is provided in a fixed state on the outside of the rotating drum, which is connected to the drying chamber and through which air from the drying chamber flows, and a filter is provided in the communication part, so that the filter is provided in a fixed state. This allows the shape and configuration of the filter to be set without having to consider the tradeoff with the rotating drum, and improves the degree of freedom in the shape and configuration of the filter. Therefore, a shape and configuration can be adopted for the filter that makes it easy to remove foreign matter that has adhered during the cleaning operation by the cleaning unit, and the cleaning operation by the cleaning unit can be performed efficiently.

A fourth characteristic configuration of the present invention is a cleaning unit including a scraping unit that scrapes off foreign matter adhering to the filter and a moving operation unit that moves the scraping unit;
The movement operation unit includes:
a first moving operation of moving the scraping portion from one end to the other end of the filter along a surface direction of the filter at a contact position where the scraping portion contacts the filter in a direction toward or away from the filter;
a second moving operation of moving the scraping portion from the contact position to a separation position in a direction toward or away from the filter, the scraping portion being separated from the filter;
a third moving operation of moving the scraping unit from the other end to the one end of the filter along a surface direction of the filter at the separated position in a direction approaching or separating from the filter;
and a fourth moving operation of moving the scraping portion from the separated position to the abutting position in the direction toward or away from the filter.

According to this configuration, by performing the first movement operation by the movement operation unit, the scraping unit can scrape off foreign matter adhering to the filter by the scraping unit and store it in the foreign matter storage unit while moving the scraping unit from one end to the other end of the filter at the contact position where the scraping unit contacts the filter in the approach/removal direction to the filter. By sequentially performing the second movement operation, the third movement operation, and the fourth movement operation by the movement operation unit, the scraping unit can be returned to its original position before the first movement operation, which is the contact position in the approach/removal direction to the filter, while moving smoothly without contacting the filter. In this way, by sequentially performing the first movement operation, the second movement operation, the third movement operation, and the fourth movement operation by the movement operation unit, the scraping unit can be moved efficiently and the cleaning operation by the cleaning unit can be performed appropriately. Moreover, the movement operation unit can perform the operation of sequentially performing the first movement operation, the second movement operation, the third movement operation, and the fourth movement operation multiple times in succession, and the foreign matter adhering to the filter can be accurately removed.

The fifth characteristic feature of the present invention is that the foreign matter storage section is configured to be freely switchable between a storage state in which foreign matter adhering to the filter is located inside the housing and can be stored, and a removal state in which the foreign matter is exposed to the outside of the housing and can be removed.

With this configuration, the foreign object storage section can be switched not only to a storage state but also to a removal state, so that a user can easily remove and discard foreign objects from the foreign object storage section exposed to the outside of the housing by simply switching the foreign object storage section to the removal state. This makes it easy to remove foreign objects stored in the foreign object storage section, further simplifying the work.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a clothes drying device; FIG. 1 is a side view showing a main part of a clothes drying device; Side view showing the filter and cleaning unit Side view showing the filter and cleaning unit Front view showing the filter and scraping unit 1 is a perspective view showing a foreign object storage section in a stored state and a removed state; FIG.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a clothes drying device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in Fig. 1, the clothes dryer 1 dries wet clothes 2 after dehydration or the like using high-temperature air K1 generated by combustion of fuel gas N. The clothes dryer 1 is provided with a box-shaped housing 3, which is provided with a drying chamber 4 capable of accommodating the clothes 2, a drying air supply section 5 capable of supplying high-temperature air K1 (drying air) to the drying chamber 4, and an exhaust section 6 for exhausting the air K in the drying chamber 4 to the outside.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 6, a single-wing door 7 is supported on the front side of the housing 3 so as to be freely opened and closed. By opening and closing this door 7, as shown in Fig. 1, a clothes insertion opening 8 provided on the front side of the housing 3 can be closed and opened. With the door 7 open, the user can insert clothes 2 into the drying chamber 4 or remove clothes 2 from the drying chamber 4 through the clothes insertion opening 8.

The drying chamber 4 is formed by a rotating drum 11 that can be rotated. The rotating drum 11 has a cylindrical internal space with a larger diameter than the circular clothes inlet 8, and this internal space is provided as the drying chamber 4. The rotating drum 11 has a front opening 11a (see FIG. 2) that is open at the front side, and the front opening 11a is connected to the clothes inlet 8. The rotating drum 11 is supported by a support shaft (not shown) that extends in a substantially horizontal direction so that it can rotate freely around the rotation axis P. In order to rotate the rotating drum 11, a drive motor 12 and a first transmission belt 14 are provided. The first transmission belt 14 is wound around a first drive pulley 13 of the drive motor 12 and the outer periphery of the rotating drum 11. The first drive pulley 13 is driven to rotate by the drive motor 12, and the first transmission belt 14 is wound to transmit the driving force of the drive motor 12 to the rotating drum 11, thereby rotating the rotating drum 11.

The drying air supply unit 5 is provided with a burner 21 that burns fuel gas N, and a high-temperature air supply passage 22 that supplies high-temperature air K1 (drying air) generated (heated) by the combustion of the burner 21 to the drying chamber 4. A fuel supply passage 23 is provided to supply fuel gas N to the burner 21, and fuel gas N is sprayed from a fuel nozzle 24 provided at the downstream end of the fuel supply passage 23 to supply fuel gas N to the burner 21. A fuel supply valve 25 is provided at a midpoint of the fuel supply passage 23, and the supply of fuel gas N is interrupted, and the supply amount of the fuel gas N can be freely adjusted. Incidentally, one fuel supply valve 25 is illustrated in FIG. 1, but for example, two valves can be provided: an interrupt valve that interrupts the supply of fuel gas N, and a supply amount adjustment valve that adjusts the supply amount of fuel gas N.

An opening 26 is formed on the underside of the housing 3, and air K can freely flow into the housing 3 from the opening 26. The burner 21 uses the air K as combustion air to combust fuel gas N supplied through the fuel supply path 23, generating high-temperature air K1 (drying air). The high-temperature air supply path 22 is connected to the drying chamber 4 through an air inlet 27 formed on the lower front side of the rotating drum 11, and the high-temperature air K1 (drying air) generated by the burner 21 can be freely supplied into the drying chamber 4.

The exhaust section 6 is equipped with an exhaust fan 31 and an exhaust passage 32 that exhausts the air K in the drying chamber 4 to the outside. To drive the exhaust fan 31, a drive motor 12 and a second transmission belt 16 are provided. The second transmission belt 16 is wound around the second drive pulley 15 of the drive motor 12 and the exhaust fan 31. The drive motor 12 drives and rotates the second drive pulley 15 to wind the second transmission belt 16, thereby transmitting the driving force of the drive motor 12 to the exhaust fan 31 and operating the exhaust fan 31. In this way, the driving force of one drive motor 12 is transmitted to the rotating drum 11 and the exhaust fan 31, allowing two devices, the rotating drum 11 and the exhaust fan 31, to be freely operated.

The exhaust fan 31 is disposed on the rear side of the rotating drum 11 and is equipped to suck in the air K in the drying chamber 4. The exhaust passage 32 is equipped with an internal passage portion 33 in the housing 3 and an external passage portion 34 outside the housing 3, and the internal passage portion 33 is connected to the external passage portion 34 (exhaust pipe) to form the exhaust passage 32 that exhausts the air K in the drying chamber 4 to the outdoors. By operating the exhaust fan 31, a flow of air K is generated in which air K is taken in from the opening 26 on the bottom surface of the housing 3 into the inside of the housing 3, the taken-in air K is supplied into the drying chamber 4 via the burner 21, and the air K in the drying chamber 4 is exhausted to the outdoors through the exhaust passage 32.

A filter 41 is disposed behind the rotating drum 11 at a position where the air K exhausted from the drying chamber 4 passes through. The filter 41 is disposed downstream (exhaust side) of the drying chamber 4 and upstream of the exhaust fan 31 in the flow direction of the air K, and removes foreign matter such as dust and lint contained in the air K exhausted from the drying chamber 4.

A control unit 9 that controls the operating state of each device is provided at the front lower portion of the housing 3. The control unit 9 can execute multiple types of operations by controlling the operating state of each device, but is primarily configured to execute a drying operation that dries the clothes 2 stored in the drying chamber 4 by operating the drying air supply unit 5 and the exhaust unit 6.

As shown in FIG. 6, the front of the housing 3 is provided with an operation unit 51 and a display unit 52. The operation unit 51 is provided with various switches, such as a power switch, a selection switch for selecting an operation or operation course, a switch for starting and pausing the drying operation, and a setting switch for setting the drying time of the drying operation. The display unit 52 is provided with various display units, such as a display unit that displays the operating status and a digital display unit that displays an estimate of the remaining drying time, etc.

In the drying operation, as shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 9 controls the fuel supply valve 25 in the drying air supply unit 5 to perform combustion by the burner 21, and controls the operating state of the drive motor 12 to operate the exhaust fan 31 in the exhaust unit 6. In this drying operation, the control unit 9 operates the drive motor 12 to operate the exhaust fan 31 and rotates the rotating drum 11 to move the clothes 2 in the drying chamber 4 without stopping them in a fixed position, thereby drying the clothes 2 efficiently.

When a set time has elapsed since the start of the drying operation, the control unit 9 controls the fuel supply valve 25 in the drying air supply unit 5 to stop combustion in the burner 21, and controls the operating state of the drive motor 12 to stop the exhaust fan 31 in the exhaust unit 6, thereby terminating the drying operation.

The set time can be, for example, a preset initial setting time, or the preset initial setting time can be changed based on the amount and weight of the clothes 2 put into the drying chamber 4. In addition, the condition for ending the drying operation is not limited to the elapse of the set time, but the drying operation can also be ended, for example, when the completion of drying of the clothes 2 is detected based on the detection information of a dryness sensor that can freely detect the dryness of the clothes 2.

A filter 41 is disposed in the housing 3 at a position where the air K exhausted from the drying chamber 4 passes through, for removing foreign matter G, such as dust and lint, contained in the air K. Since foreign matter G (see FIG. 3) adheres to this filter 41, it is necessary to remove and clean the foreign matter G. Therefore, in this embodiment, a cleaning unit 42 is provided that can freely perform a cleaning operation to collect the foreign matter G adhered to the filter 41 and store it in a foreign matter storage unit 49.

The filter 41 and the cleaning unit 42 will now be described.
2, a communication part 43 is provided on the rear side of the rotating drum 11, which is connected to the drying chamber 4 and through which the air K from the drying chamber 4 flows, and a filter 41 is disposed at the rear end of the communication part 43. An opening 44 having a smaller diameter than the rotating drum 11 is formed on the central side of the rear wall part 11b of the rotating drum 11, and a porous part 45 (e.g., punched metal) having a large number of holes that are freely ventilated is provided in a state in which the opening 44 is closed. The filter 41 is formed, for example, so that the vertical width is approximately the same as the diameter of the opening 44 having a smaller diameter than the rotating drum 11.

A communication section 43 is provided separately from the rotating drum 11, and the communication section 43 is provided in a fixed state by a fixed support section not shown. A cushioning material 46 is provided at the connection point between the rear wall section 11b of the rotating drum 11 and the communication section 43 to receive friction caused by the rotation of the rotating drum 11. Since the filter 41 is provided in the communication section 43, the filter 41 is provided in a fixed state while the rotating drum 11 rotates. This allows the shape and configuration of the filter 41 to be set without having to take into account the rotating drum 11, and the shape and configuration can be freely set. For example, the filter 41 can be formed into a simple shape such as a rectangular shape when viewed from the front (see FIG. 5).

As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning unit 42 is also provided in the communication unit 43 together with the filter 41, and is disposed in a position adjacent to the front surface of the filter 41. The cleaning unit 42 is provided with a scraping unit 47 that scrapes off foreign matter G adhering to the filter 41, and a movement operation unit 48 that moves the scraping unit 47. As shown in FIG. 5, the scraping unit 47 has a length that covers the entire length of the rectangular filter 41 in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the scraping unit 47 is formed, for example, in a brush shape, and is moved by the movement operation unit 48 while in contact with the filter 41 to scrape off foreign matter G adhering to the filter 41.

As shown in FIG. 2, the movement operation unit 48 includes a lift operation unit 48a that can lift and lower the scraping unit 47 in the vertical direction between an upper position corresponding to the upper end of the rectangular filter 41 (see solid lines in FIGS. 3(A), 4(B), and 5) and a lower position corresponding to the lower end (see dotted lines in FIGS. 3(B), 4(A), and 5), and a front-rear movement operation unit 48b that can move the scraping unit 47 in the front-rear direction of the housing 3 (the direction toward and away from the filter 41) between an abutting position where it abuts the filter 41 (see FIGS. 3(A) and (B)) and a separated position where it is separated from the filter 41 (see FIGS. 4(A) and (B)). The lift operation unit 48a lifts and lowers the lift belt using an actuator such as a motor, for example, to lift and lower the scraping unit 47. The forward/backward movement operation unit 48b allows the scraping unit 47 to be freely moved together with the lift operation unit 48a in the forward/backward direction of the housing 3 (the direction toward and away from the filter 41) along a guide that extends in the forward/backward direction by an actuator such as a piston.

The movement operation unit 48 is configured to sequentially perform a first movement operation, a second movement operation, a third movement operation, and a fourth movement operation to move the scraping unit 47 using the lift operation unit 48a and the front-rear movement operation unit 48b.

In the first movement operation, the movement operation unit 48 lowers the scraping unit 47 from an upper position to a lower position along the surface direction of the filter 41 at the contact position where the scraping unit 47 is in contact with the filter 41, by using the lift operation unit 48a, as shown in FIG. 3(A) to FIG. 3(B). In the second movement operation, the movement operation unit 48 moves the scraping unit 47 from the contact position where the scraping unit 47 is in contact with the filter 41 to a separated position where the scraping unit 47 is separated from the filter 41, by using the front-rear movement operation unit 48b, as shown in FIG. 3(B) to FIG. 4(A). In the third movement operation, the movement operation unit 48 raises the scraping unit 47 from a lower position to an upper position along the surface direction of the filter 41 at the separated position where the scraping unit 47 is separated from the filter, by using the lift operation unit 48a, as shown in FIG. 4(A) to FIG. 4(B). In the fourth movement operation, the movement operation unit 48 moves the scraping unit 47 from a position spaced apart from the filter 41 to a position in contact with the filter 41 by using the forward/backward movement operation unit 48b, so as to transition from FIG. 4(B) to FIG. 3(A).

As shown in the transition from FIG. 3(A) to FIG. 3(B), the movement operation unit 48 performs a first movement operation, whereby the scraping unit 47 is lowered from the upper position to the lower position at the contact position where the scraping unit 47 is in contact with the filter 41, during which the scraping unit 47 scrapes off and drops foreign matter G adhering to the filter 41, and the foreign matter G is stored in the foreign matter storage unit 49 disposed below the filter 41. The foreign matter storage unit 49 is formed in a cylindrical box shape with a bottom, and receives and stores the dropped foreign matter G inside.

As shown in the order of Fig. 3(B) → Fig. 4(A) → Fig. 4(B) → Fig. 3(A), the movement operation unit 48 sequentially performs the second movement operation, the third movement operation, and the fourth movement operation, whereby the scraping unit 47 is raised from the lower position to the upper position at the separated position where it is separated from the filter 41, thereby moving the scraping unit 47 to the upper position without contacting the filter 41, and then returning the scraping unit 47 to the initial contact position where it was contacting the filter 41.

In this way, the cleaning unit 42 performs a cleaning operation to collect foreign matter G attached to the filter 41 and store it in the foreign matter storage unit 49 by sequentially performing the first, second, third, and fourth movement operations with the movement operation unit 48. The cleaning unit 42 executes the operation of sequentially performing the first, second, third, and fourth movement operations with the movement operation unit 48, but the number of times the first, second, third, and fourth movement operations are sequentially performed in one cleaning operation can be appropriately set, and can be set to, for example, two or more times. In this way, when the number of times the first, second, third, and fourth movement operations are sequentially performed is set to two or more times, the operation of sequentially performing the first, second, third, and fourth movement operations is repeated, and the foreign matter G attached to the filter 41 can be more reliably removed.

As shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 9 is configured to be able to perform a filter cleaning operation in which, in addition to the drying operation, the cleaning unit 42 is operated to clean after the drying operation is completed, and foreign matter G adhering to the filter 41 is collected and stored in the foreign matter storage unit 49. The control unit 9 can automatically perform the filter cleaning operation after the drying operation is completed. This allows the filter cleaning operation to be performed every time the drying operation is performed, making it possible to appropriately prevent foreign matter G from accumulating on the filter 41.

The timing at which the control unit 9 executes the filter cleaning operation can be set as appropriate. For example, the user can operate the operation unit 51 to cause the control unit 9 to execute the filter cleaning operation, and the control unit 9 can execute the filter cleaning operation according to the needs of the user. In addition, when the control unit 9 executes the drying operation a set number of times, the control unit 9 can automatically execute the filter cleaning operation after the drying operation is completed. Furthermore, the control unit 9 can execute the filter cleaning operation each time a set period or time has elapsed. In this way, the timing at which the control unit 9 executes the filter cleaning operation can be set as appropriate unless the drying operation is being executed by the control unit 9.

As shown in FIG. 2, the foreign matter storage section 49 has a storage capacity sufficient to store a large number of foreign matter G. The storage capacity of foreign matter G in the foreign matter storage section 49 can be set, for example, to a capacity sufficient to store all of the foreign matter G removed from the filter 41 when the drying operation is performed a set number of times (e.g., three times). This eliminates the need to remove and discard the foreign matter G from the foreign matter storage section 49 each time the drying operation is performed, and reduces the number of times that the foreign matter G must be removed and discarded, thereby reducing the amount of work required.

As shown in FIG. 6, the foreign object storage section 49 is configured to be freely switched between a storage state (a state shown by a dotted line in FIG. 6) in which foreign objects G located inside the housing 3 and adhering to the filter 41 can be stored, and a removal state (a state shown by a solid line in FIG. 6) in which stored foreign objects G exposed to the outside of the housing 3 can be removed. The foreign object storage section 49 is provided so as to be freely slidable in the left-right direction relative to the housing 3, and is configured to be freely switched between the storage state and the removal state by this sliding movement. The foreign object storage section 49 is provided so as to be freely switched to the removal state by bulging outward from the side portion of the housing 3. When switching the foreign object storage section 49 from the storage state to the removal state, a hook portion 49a is provided on the side portion of the foreign object storage section 49 so that the user can pull out the foreign object storage section 49 by hand.

The foreign object storage section 49 may also be provided with a storage amount detection section that can freely detect the amount of stored foreign object G. In this case, when the storage amount detection section detects that the amount of stored foreign object G is equal to or greater than a set amount, a warning message can be displayed on the display section 52 to inform the user that the amount of stored foreign object G in the foreign object storage section 49 is full, and to urge the user to take action such as removing and discarding the foreign object G.

[Another embodiment]
Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below. Note that the configurations of the embodiments described below are not limited to being applied alone, but may also be applied in combination with the configurations of other embodiments.

(1) In the above embodiment, high-temperature air K1 (drying air) is generated by combustion of the burner 21. However, for example, high-temperature air (drying air) can also be generated by heating with an electric heater. The heating unit for generating the high-temperature air K1 is not limited to a burner, and other heating units can also be applied.

(2) In the above embodiment, the rotating drum 11 is rotated around a rotation axis P that is approximately horizontal, but the rotating drum can also be rotated around a rotation axis that is approximately vertical, and the setting of the rotation axis of the rotating drum can be changed as appropriate.

(3) In the above embodiment, the internal space of the rotating drum 11, which can be rotated freely, is provided as the drying chamber 4, but the drying chamber 4 can also be provided in a fixed state.

(4) In the above embodiment, the movement operating unit 48 moves the scraping unit 47 between an upper position and a lower position along the surface direction of the filter 41. However, for example, the scraping unit 47 can also be moved left and right between one end and the other end of the width direction of the filter 41 along the surface direction of the filter 41, and the way in which the scraping unit 47 is moved can be changed as appropriate.

(5) In the above embodiment, a fixed communication portion 43 is provided, and the filter 41 and cleaning portion 42 are provided in the communication portion 43. However, for example, the filter 41 can be provided in the rear wall portion 11b of the rotating drum 11, so that the filter 41 can be provided rotatably integrally with the rotating drum 11. In this case, the cleaning portion 42 can be provided inside the rotating drum 11. In this way, the locations where the filter 41 and cleaning portion 42 are provided can be changed as appropriate.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Clothes drying device 2 Clothes 3 Housing 4 Drying chamber 5 Drying air supply section 6 Exhaust section 9 Control section 11 Rotating drum 41 Filter 42 Cleaning section 43 Communication section 47 Scraping section 48 Movement operation section 49 Foreign matter storage section G Foreign matter K Air K1 High temperature air (drying air)

Claims (4)

The drying apparatus includes a drying chamber capable of storing clothes, a drying air supply section capable of supplying drying air to the drying chamber, an exhaust section for exhausting air from the drying chamber to the outside, a filter disposed at a position through which the air exhausted from the drying chamber passes, and a cleaning section capable of executing a cleaning operation for collecting foreign matter adhering to the filter and storing the foreign matter in a foreign matter storage section ,
The cleaning unit includes a scraping unit that scrapes off foreign matter adhering to the filter, and a moving unit that moves the scraping unit.
The movement operation unit includes:
a first moving operation of moving the scraping part from an upper end to a lower end of the filter along a surface direction of the filter at a contact position where the scraping part is brought into contact with the filter in a direction approaching or separating from the filter;
a second moving operation of moving the scraping portion from the contact position to a separation position in a direction toward or away from the filter, the scraping portion being separated from the filter;
a third moving operation of moving the scraping unit from the lower end to the upper end of the filter along a surface direction of the filter at a separated position in a direction approaching or separating from the filter;
and a fourth moving operation of moving the scraping part from the separated position to the abutting position in a direction toward or away from the filter,
The foreign matter storage section is disposed below a filter in a clothes drying apparatus. A control unit is provided to control the operating states of the drying air supply unit, the exhaust unit, and the cleaning unit,
The clothes drying device of claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to freely execute a drying operation in which the drying air supply unit and the exhaust unit are operated to dry the clothes stored in the drying chamber, and a filter cleaning operation in which, after the drying operation is completed, the cleaning unit is operated to perform cleaning, thereby collecting foreign matter adhering to the filter and storing it in a foreign matter storage unit. The clothes drying device according to claim 1 or 2, which is provided with a freely rotatable rotating drum, the internal space of which is provided as the drying chamber, and a fixed communication part is provided on the air exhaust side of the drying chamber, which is connected to the outside of the rotating drum and through which air from the drying chamber flows, and the filter is disposed in the communication part. The clothes drying device described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the foreign matter storage section is configured to be freely switched between a storage state located inside the housing in which foreign matter adhering to the filter can be stored and a removal state exposed to the outside of the housing in which the stored foreign matter can be freely removed.

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