Water treatment system

Abstract

A water treatment system includes a washer having a tub that is supplied with water, and an activated oxygen generator for producing ionic species of oxygen in a gaseous stream of air, the gaseous stream of air being selectively introduced into the tub. An integrated controller is provided for controlling both the washer and the activated oxygen generator, thus coordinating operation of the washer and the activated oxygen generator.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a Continuation-in-Part and claims the benefit of pending U.S. Utility application Ser. No. 10 / 801,249, filed on Mar. 17, 2004, and herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.FIELD OF INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates, in general, to a water treatment system, and deals more particularly with an integrated water treatment system for providing an activated oxygen and germicidal enriched gas stream to the water utilized in cleaning apparatuses. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] The science of cleaning laundry in a horizontal axis large capacity washer-extractor (washing machine) is a commonly known art based on the following general description. A washer-extractor is designed for cleaning laundry only. The machine performs the following principle functions: water and chemical injection, wash / clean, rinse, drain, and water extraction. The washer-extractor is comprised of two basic parts: an outer shell...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0020] A further object of the invention is to provide a water treatment system that is integrated with each individual machine to which the system is connected, thereby avoiding cumbersome and inefficient piping of the activated oxygen.

[0022] A further object of the invention is to provide a water treatment system where the replacement of the UV lamp apparatus is easily accomplished, and in which the introduction of the activated oxygen is controlled to prevent damage to articles of clothing that are to be washed.

[0024] Another object of the present invention is to provide a housing for the UV lamp which helps maintain the optimal operating temperature of the UV lamp, thereby facilitating the desired production of activated oxygen.

Problems solved by technology

Although it is known to use enriched gas in the form of activated oxygen or ozone in cleaning applications, several drawbacks currently exist with these known systems.

Corona discharge systems oftentimes fail, however, in maintaining appropriate levels of activated oxygen within those devices provided with the gaseous streams.

The piping of the gaseous stream, from the corona discharge generator to the individual machine(s), inherently causes the level of activated oxygen to diminish in direct relation to the length of the pipe, oftentimes causing the delivery of undesirable or fluctuating levels of activated oxygen.

Even in finely controlled corona discharge systems, the use of extended piping and the associated complexity and cost of controlling an accurate amount of activated oxygen in the gaseous stream, makes such systems largely inefficient.

Still further, corona discharge systems cannot use humid air streams owing to the concerns over the creation of nitrous oxide.

Therefore, known corona discharge systems cannot typically utilize untreated ambient air, further increasing the complexity and expense of such systems.

In the system described in the '050 patent, however, the UV radiation is exposed to the tub of the washer itself, the direct infusion of which poses potential harm to the items in the tub given the high concentration of ozone in direct contact with these items.

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