Heat pump clothes dryer and control method thereof

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of drying, in particular to a heat pump clothes dryer and a control method thereof, and aims to solve the problem that an existing heat pump clothes dryer is low in drying efficiency. In order to achieve the purpose, the heat pump clothes dryer comprises a clothes processing barrel, a drying air duct, a condenser, a compressor, an evaporator, a draught fan and a box body, the evaporator is located on the upstream of the condenser, the compressor is located between the evaporator and the condenser, the compressor is sleeved with the box body, and the box body is provided with an opening with the adjustable opening degree. The clothes characteristics comprise the initial weight and the current weight of the to-be-dried clothes; determining a drying process according to the clothes characteristics; the opening degree of the opening is adjusted according to the drying process so as to adjust the heat exchange efficiency of the compressor and the air in the circulating air duct, and therefore the drying efficiency of the heat pump clothes dryer is improved, the clothes drying time of the heat pump clothes dryer is shortened, and the use satisfaction degree of a user is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of drying, and in particular provides a heat pump clothes dryer and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] As a household appliance that can quickly dry clothes, heat pump dryers allow people to wear dry and comfortable clothes in humid weather. They also reduce the space used for drying clothes and improve people's quality of life. Therefore, dryers are becoming more and more popular among users.

[0003] But at the same time, with the application of dryers, people have put forward higher requirements for the quality, speed, uniformity and energy consumption of drying. Heat pump dryers are the main product type in the current dryer market due to their energy-saving advantages. However, the slow heating speed of existing heat pump dryers in the early stage of drying has also become a major pain point for users. Therefore, the art needs a new heat pump dryer and a control method thereof to solve the above technical problems. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present invention aims to solve the above technical problem, that is, to solve the problem of low drying efficiency of the existing heat pump dryer.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a control method for a heat pump clothes dryer, the heat pump clothes dryer comprising a clothes processing drum, a drying air duct, a condenser, a compressor, an evaporator, a fan and a box, the drying air duct and the clothes processing drum are configured as a circulation air duct, the fan is located in the circulation air duct, the evaporator is located upstream of the condenser, the compressor is located between the evaporator and the condenser, the box is sleeved outside the compressor, and the box has an opening with an adjustable opening, the control method comprising:

[0006] Acquiring clothing characteristics, wherein the clothing characteristics include an initial weight and a current weight of the clothing to be dried;

[0007] Determining a drying process according to the initial weight and the current weight;

[0008] The opening degree is adjusted according to the drying process to adjust the heat exchange efficiency between the compressor and the air in the circulating air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer.

[0009] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the step of determining the drying process according to the clothing characteristics comprises:

[0010] determining the moisture content of the laundry to be dried according to the initial weight and the current weight;

[0011] The drying process is determined according to the moisture content.

[0012] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the clothing characteristics further include clothing material, and the step of determining the drying process according to the clothing characteristics includes:

[0013] Calling a preset first mapping relationship table storing a correspondence between the clothing material, the initial weight, the current weight and the drying process;

[0014] The drying process is determined according to the clothing material, the initial weight, the current weight and the first mapping relationship table.

[0015] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the step of adjusting the opening according to the drying process includes:

[0016] Acquiring the exhaust temperature of the compressor;

[0017] The opening degree is determined according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process.

[0018] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the drying process includes an early drying period and a late drying period, and the step of determining the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process includes:

[0019] Calling a preset first temperature threshold, a second temperature threshold, and a third temperature threshold, wherein the third temperature threshold>the second temperature threshold>the first temperature threshold;

[0020] When the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, closing the opening;

[0021] If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a first preset opening degree;

[0022] If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a second preset opening degree;

[0023] If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened 100%.

[0024] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the step of determining the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process further includes:

[0025] The step of "determining the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process" further includes:

[0026] When the drying process is in the late drying stage, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a fourth preset opening degree;

[0027] When the drying process is in the late drying stage, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, the opening is closed.

[0028] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the control method further includes:

[0029] Determining a target drying temperature according to the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, and the material of the clothes;

[0030] Obtaining the current drying temperature inside the clothing care drum;

[0031] The compression power of the compressor is adjusted according to the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature, so that the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is less than or equal to a preset difference threshold.

[0032] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the step of determining the target drying temperature according to the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight and the material of the clothes comprises:

[0033] Calling a preset second mapping relationship table storing a correspondence between the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, the material of the clothes and the target drying temperature;

[0034] The target drying temperature is determined according to the drying process, the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, the material of the clothes and the second mapping relationship table.

[0035] In the preferred technical solution of the control method of the heat pump dryer, the control method further includes:

[0036] When the difference between the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature is greater than the difference threshold, reducing the compression power;

[0037] When the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is less than the difference threshold, the compression power is increased.

[0038] In a second aspect, the present invention further provides a heat pump clothes dryer, the heat pump clothes dryer comprising a controller, wherein the controller is configured to execute the above control method.

[0039] In the case of adopting the above technical solution, the compressor of the heat pump dryer of the present invention is installed in the drying air duct, and the position of the compressor is set downstream of the evaporator and upstream of the condenser, so that in the process of drying clothes by the heat pump dryer, the condensed and dried air flowing through the evaporator can absorb the heat of the compressor shell and then be heated by the condenser to increase the temperature rise rate of the air in the drying air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer. In addition, the heat pump dryer of the present invention is provided with a box body on the outside of the compressor, and the box body has an opening with an adjustable opening, so that the heat pump dryer of the present invention can adjust the opening of the box body according to the drying process, so as to further improve the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0041] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 2 is a flow chart of an implementation method of a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 3 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 4 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 5 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 6 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 7 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 8 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0049] Fig. 9 is a flow chart of another embodiment of a method for controlling a heat pump clothes dryer of the present invention;

[0050] Fig.10 It is a flow chart of another embodiment of the control method of the heat pump dryer of the present invention.

[0051] List of reference numerals:

[0052] 100. Heat pump dryer; 1. Device body; 2. Clothes processing drum; 3. Clothes feature detection module; 4. First temperature sensor; 5. Drying air duct; 6. Fan; 7. Condenser; 8. Compressor; 9. Evaporator; 10. Box; 11. Second temperature sensor. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0053] The preferred embodiments of the present application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that these embodiments are only used to explain the technical principles of the present application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present application. Those skilled in the art can make adjustments to them as needed to adapt to specific application scenarios. For example, although the description is described in conjunction with a heat pump dryer, it is obviously also applicable to other household appliances with a drying function.

[0054] It should be noted that, in the description of the present invention, the terms "inside", "outside" and the like indicating directions or positional relationships are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings, which are merely for the convenience of description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" and "fourth" and the drawings are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated, and thus, the features defined as "first", "second", "third" and "fourth" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "multiple" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0055] In addition, it should be noted that in the description of the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal communication of two components. For those skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0056] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 The flowchart is a method for controlling a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 7 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 8 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 9 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.10 It is a flow chart of another implementation manner of a control method for a heat pump dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0057] like Figure 1 As shown, in order to solve the problem of low drying efficiency of the existing heat pump dryer 100, the present invention provides a heat pump dryer 100, which includes a clothes processing drum 2, a drying air duct 5, a condenser 7, a compressor 8, an evaporator 9, a fan 6 and a box 10. Specifically, the clothes processing drum 2 is installed inside the device body 1 of the heat pump dryer 100, and the drying air duct 5 and the clothes processing drum 2 are configured to form a circulating air duct. The fan 6 is installed in the circulating air duct to drive the air inside the heat pump dryer 100 to circulate in the circulating air duct. The evaporator 9, the compressor 8 and the condenser 7 are all installed in the circulating air duct, the evaporator 9 is located upstream of the condenser 7, and the compressor 8 is located between the evaporator 9 and the condenser 7. The box 10 is sleeved on the outside of the compressor 8, and the box 10 has an opening with an adjustable opening, and the box 10 is configured so that when the opening is in a closed state, the box 10 seals the compressor 8 inside the accommodating cavity of the box 10. Through the above-mentioned configuration, the heat pump dryer 100 of the present invention can adjust the opening of the cabinet 10 according to the drying process to adjust the heat exchange efficiency between the compressor 8 and the air in the circulating air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer 100.

[0058] As a possible implementation, Figure 1 As shown, the heat pump dryer 100 further includes a first temperature sensor 4 and a second temperature sensor 11. The first temperature sensor 4 is disposed at the exhaust port of the compressor 8 and is used to detect the exhaust temperature of the compressor 8. The second temperature sensor 11 is disposed inside the clothing treatment tub 2 and is used to detect the air temperature in the clothing treatment tub 2. It should be noted that in the specific implementation of the present invention, the number of the second temperature sensors 11 is multiple, and the multiple second temperature sensors 11 are evenly distributed on the inner wall of the clothing treatment tub 2 and are used to detect the average temperature of the air inside the clothing treatment tub 2.

[0059] As a possible implementation, Figure 1As shown, the heat pump dryer 100 further includes a clothing feature detection module 3, which is installed in the clothing treatment drum 2 and is used to detect the characteristics of the clothing placed in the clothing treatment drum 2. Specifically, as an implementation of the above-mentioned heat pump dryer 100 improved in this embodiment, the clothing feature detection module 3 includes a clothing material type detector and a weight sensor. The clothing material type detector can directly determine the material type of the clothing. For example, the existing clothing material type detector includes a clothing material detection instrument for various clothing materials based on spectroscopy, infrared thermal imaging and computer vision technology for detecting clothing material and / or clothing color. The weight sensor is arranged between the clothing treatment drum 2 and the device body 1 of the heat pump dryer 100, and is used to detect the initial weight and current weight of the clothing placed in the clothing treatment drum 2, wherein the initial weight is the weight of the clothing when it is in a drying state.

[0060] It should be noted that, although the above description is that the material type of the clothes to be dried placed in the clothes processing drum 2 is directly determined by the clothes material type detector arranged inside the clothes processing drum 2, this is not restrictive. In other embodiments of the present invention, an image detection device (not shown) for detecting the label information on the clothes to be dried may also be arranged inside the clothes processing drum 2, such as a camera, a scanner or a camera. In this case, before placing the clothes to be dried inside the clothes processing drum 2, the side of the clothes to be dried with the label needs to be placed outside so that the label on the clothes to be dried can be exposed outside, so that the image detection device can obtain the image information on the label, wherein each piece of clothes to be dried is provided with a corresponding label. After the image detection device obtains the label information on the clothes to be dried, the label information is matched with the clothes feature library to obtain the clothes feature information corresponding to the clothes. The label information may include information such as the product number and brand of the clothes. The clothing feature library stores clothing feature information, including product number information, and information such as clothing material and dry weight of the clothing to be dried corresponding to the product number, wherein the product number is a unique identifier of the clothing to be dried, so that the feature information of the clothing to be dried can be obtained by identifying the product number. Specifically, the product number can be a serial number or a QR code, and can obviously be other forms of identification, as long as the corresponding clothing to be dried can be obtained by identifying the product number. The clothing feature library can be stored in the heat pump dryer 100 or the cloud server.

[0061] In addition, although the clothing material type detector or image detection device described above is arranged inside the clothing processing drum 2, this is not restrictive. In other embodiments of the present invention, the clothing material type detector or the image detection device may also be arranged outside the heat pump dryer 100. In this case, when the user needs to use the heat pump dryer 100 to dry the clothes to be dried, it is necessary to detect the material of the clothes through the clothing material type detector or to identify the label on the clothes through the image detection device, so that the heat pump dryer 100 can detect information such as the material of the clothes.

[0062] In the present application, the heat pump dryer 100 further includes a driving unit (not shown), which is connected to the housing 10 and is used to drive the opening of the opening on the housing 10. Specifically, in the specific implementation of the present invention, the driving unit includes a stepping motor, the main body of the stepping motor is fixedly connected to the housing 10, and the output shaft of the stepping motor is connected to a door body (not shown) installed at the opening through a gear transmission structure, and is used to drive the opening of the door body installed at the opening, wherein the door body is slidably connected or rotationally connected to the opening.

[0063] In the present application, the heat pump dryer 100 further includes a controller (not shown), which is respectively connected to the compressor 8, the fan 6, the clothing feature detection module 3, the first temperature sensor 4, the second temperature sensor 11 and the driving unit, so that the controller can control the compression power and the opening degree of the compressor 8 according to the detected clothing features and the air temperature in the clothing treatment drum 2, thereby adjusting the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer 100. It should be noted that the controller can be a control chip of the heat pump dryer 100 itself, or a control module specifically used to execute the control method of the present application, or a functional unit of the control module.

[0064] Below, refer to Figure 2-Figure 9 To illustrate possible implementations of the control method for the heat pump dryer of the present invention.

[0065] like Figure 2 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the heat pump dryer of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0066] S101: Acquire clothing characteristics, where the clothing characteristics include clothing material, initial weight, and current weight of the clothing to be dried;

[0067] S102: Determine the drying process according to the characteristics of the clothes;

[0068] S103: adjusting the opening degree according to the drying process to adjust the heat exchange efficiency between the compressor and the air in the circulating air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer.

[0069] In S101, the clothing material type detector detects the clothing material of the clothing placed in the clothing treatment drum. Specifically, the detected clothing material information includes clothing mainly made of cotton, silk, linen or synthetic fibers. Moreover, in the specific implementation of the present invention, if the clothing material type detector detects that there are multiple types of clothing materials placed in the inner drum, resulting in a large difference in the degree of drying of the clothing placed in the inner drum by the same drying scheme, the control panel issues a voice prompt message that the clothing material does not meet the requirements. For example, when the clothing treatment drum contains clothing of different clothing materials, the different clothing materials have different water absorption capacities, which will cause errors in the moisture content of the clothing detected by the heat pump dryer. Therefore, when clothing of different clothing materials is mixed in the clothing at the same time, the clothing of different clothing materials needs to be picked out so that the clothing materials in the clothing treatment drum are consistent, thereby improving the accuracy of the moisture content of the clothing detected by the heat pump dryer. The gravity sensor detects the current weight of the clothes. When the heat pump dryer includes a washing function, the gravity sensor detects the dry weight of the clothes, that is, the initial weight of the clothes. It should be noted that if the heat pump dryer does not have a washing function, the image detection device determines the initial weight of the corresponding clothes by acquiring the label information on the clothes.

[0070] In S102, the drying process of the heat pump dryer is determined according to the initial weight of the clothes, the material of the clothes and the current weight of the clothes.

[0071] In S103, the opening degree is adjusted according to the drying process to adjust the heat exchange rate between the compressor housing and the air in the circulating air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer, thereby speeding up the drying speed of the heat pump dryer and improving user satisfaction.

[0072] like Figure 3 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the heat pump dryer of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0073] S201: Determine the moisture content of the clothes to be dried according to the initial weight and the current weight;

[0074] S202: Determine the drying process according to the material and moisture content of the clothes.

[0075] In S201, in a specific implementation of the present invention, the moisture content of the clothes is calculated based on the initial weight and current weight of the clothes.

[0076] In S202, the drying process of the heat pump dryer is determined according to the moisture content of the clothes.

[0077] like Figure 4As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0078] S301: calling a preset first mapping relationship table storing the corresponding relationship between clothing material, initial weight, current weight and drying process;

[0079] S302: Determine the drying process according to the clothing material, initial weight, current weight and the first mapping relationship table.

[0080] In S301, during the specific implementation of the present invention, the inventor discovered that during the drying process of the heat pump dryer, the drying process of the heat pump dryer is also related to the material of the clothes. Specifically, when the material of the clothes is different, the water absorption capacity of the clothes will also be different. Based on this, during the drying process of the heat pump dryer, even if the moisture content of the clothes in the clothes processing drum is the same, the drying process of the heat pump dryer will also be different with the different materials of the clothes. In this way, during the specific implementation of the present invention, those skilled in the art can pre-train the corresponding relationship between the material of the clothes, the initial weight of the clothes, the current weight of the clothes and the drying process, and store the trained corresponding relationship in the first mapping relationship table.

[0081] In S302, in the specific implementation process of the present invention, after obtaining the clothing material, initial weight and current weight, the obtained clothing material, initial weight and current weight are compared with the first mapping relationship table to determine the drying process of the heat pump dryer.

[0082] like Figure 5 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0083] S401: Obtaining the exhaust temperature of the compressor;

[0084] S402: Determine the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process.

[0085] In S401, the exhaust gas temperature at the exhaust port of the compressor is acquired by a first temperature sensor.

[0086] In S402, the opening degree of the opening is determined according to the exhaust temperature of the compressor and the drying process, so that the heat pump dryer can adjust the heat exchange speed of the compressor according to the drying process, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer.

[0087] like Figure 6 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0088] S501: calling a preset first temperature threshold, a second temperature threshold, and a third temperature threshold;

[0089] S502: When the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, closing the opening;

[0090] S503: If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a first preset opening degree;

[0091] S504: if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a second preset opening degree;

[0092] S505: If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened 100%.

[0093] In S501: a first temperature threshold, a second temperature threshold, and a third temperature threshold preset and stored in the controller are called, wherein the third temperature threshold>the second temperature threshold>the first temperature threshold.

[0094] In S502, when the drying process is in the early stage of drying, the condenser of the heat pump dryer heats the air in the circulating air duct, so that the air temperature in the clothing processing drum is increased. However, the inventor found that since the evaporator that has a cooling effect on the air is installed upstream of the condenser, the air will first pass through the evaporator when flowing in the circulating air duct. This will make the temperature of the air flowing through the compressor lower, and the exhaust temperature of the compressor is also relatively low. This will also make the temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the condenser lower, which will lead to a slower heating rate of the air temperature flowing through the condenser. At this time, in order to increase the heating rate of the condenser for the air in the circulating air duct, it is necessary to quickly increase the temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the condenser. Based on this, in the specific implementation of the present invention, the opening set on the box body can be adjusted to a closed state so that the box body can seal the compressor inside. In this way, during the operation of the compressor, the heat on the compressor casing is sealed inside the box body, so that the heat in the compressor can be transferred to the refrigerant more quickly, so that the temperature of the refrigerant inside the compressor can be quickly increased, thereby allowing the temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the condenser to be rapidly increased. In this way, even if the air in the circulating air duct is first cooled by the evaporator, it can be quickly heated up under the action of the condenser, thereby accelerating the increase rate of the air temperature in the clothing treatment drum, and then accelerating the drying speed of the heat pump dryer.

[0095] In S503, when the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door to open the first preset opening, so that the compressor can exchange energy with the air in the circulating air duct, thereby reducing the temperature rise rate of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor exhaust port, thereby reducing the risk of damage caused by excessive compressor temperature. In addition, since the door of the box is in an open state, the temperature of the air in the circulating air duct rises at a faster rate.

[0096] It should be noted that the first preset opening can be determined by the designer based on experience, experiment, calculation, etc. For example, the value of the first preset opening can be set to 33%, so that when the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the controller controls the drive unit to drive the door body to open 33%, so that the compressor can exchange heat with the cold air formed by flowing through the evaporator, so that the refrigerant in the compressor can exchange heat with the cold air, thereby slowing down the temperature rise rate of the compressor shell or making the compressor shell temperature unchanged or even lower. Obviously, the value of the first preset opening can also be set to 30%, 40% or 45%, and this adjustment does not deviate from the principle of the present invention, and therefore will also fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0097] In S504, when the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door to open the second preset opening, wherein the second preset opening is greater than the first preset opening, so that the compressor can exchange energy with the air in the circulating air duct more quickly, thereby further reducing the heating rate of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor exhaust port, thereby further reducing the risk of damage due to excessive compressor temperature, thereby making the temperature of the air in the circulating air duct rise at a faster rate.

[0098] It should be noted that the second preset opening can be determined by the designer based on experience, experiment, calculation, etc. For example, the value of the second preset opening can be set to 66%, so that when the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the controller controls the drive unit to drive the door body to open 66%, so that the compressor can exchange heat with the cold air formed by flowing through the evaporator more quickly, so that the refrigerant in the compressor can exchange heat with the cold air more quickly, thereby further slowing down the temperature rise rate of the compressor shell or making the compressor shell temperature unchanged or even lower. Obviously, the value of the second preset opening can also be set to 55%, 60% or 70%, but this is not restrictive. As long as the second preset opening is greater than the first preset opening, this adjustment does not deviate from the principle of the present invention and therefore falls within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0099] In S505, when the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the third temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door to open 100%, so that the compressor can exchange heat with the air in the circulating air duct at the fastest speed, so that the air in the circulating air duct can be quickly heated up under the action of the compressor.

[0100] like Figure 7 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0101] S601: when the drying process is in the late stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a third preset opening degree;

[0102] S602: when the drying process is in the late stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a fourth preset opening degree;

[0103] S603: When the drying process is in the late stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, the opening is closed.

[0104] In S601, when the drying process is in the late stage of drying, the water content of the clothes in the clothes treatment drum is not much. At this time, in order to avoid the clothes from being damaged by drying, the controller of the heat pump dryer will reduce the drying temperature in the clothes treatment drum, so that the compression power of the compressor can also be reduced accordingly, so that the surface temperature of the shell of the compressor will also be reduced accordingly, thereby causing the temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the compressor to be reduced. Moreover, because the compression power of the compressor is reduced, the temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the condenser will be reduced at a faster rate. Then, in order to slow down the speed of the temperature drop of the refrigerant flowing through the condenser, so as to indirectly slow down the speed of the temperature drop of the air in the clothes treatment drum, the opening degree of the opening can be reduced. Specifically, when the first temperature sensor detects that the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door body from the 100% open state to the third preset opening degree, wherein the third preset opening degree is less than the maximum opening degree of the opening. Through the above-mentioned setting method, the heat pump dryer can reduce the compression power of the compressor while slowing down the rate of decrease of the air temperature in the clothing processing drum, thereby ensuring the drying effect of the heat pump dryer, so that the heat pump dryer can also dry the clothes at a faster speed, thereby ensuring the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer, and can also reduce the power consumption of the heat pump dryer, save the drying cost, and improve the user's satisfaction.

[0105] It should be noted that the third preset opening can be determined by the designer based on experience, experiment, calculation, etc. For example, the value of the third preset opening can be set to 66%, so that when the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the second preset temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door body from 100% opening to the third preset opening, so as to reduce the heat exchange rate between the compressor and the cold air flowing through the evaporator, thereby slowing down the cooling rate of the compressor shell. Obviously, the value of the third preset opening can also be set to 55%, 60% or 70%, and this adjustment does not deviate from the principle of the present invention, and therefore will fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0106] In S602, when the drying process is in the later stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature of the compressor detected by the first temperature sensor is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door body from the third preset opening to the fourth preset opening, thereby further slowing down the rate of decrease of the air temperature in the clothing processing drum.

[0107] It should be noted that the fourth preset opening can be determined by the designer based on experience, experiment, calculation, etc. For example, the value of the fourth preset opening can be set to 33%, so that when the exhaust temperature of the compressor is greater than or equal to the first preset temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door body from the third opening to the fourth preset opening, so as to further reduce the heat exchange rate between the compressor and the cold air flowing through the evaporator, thereby further slowing down the cooling rate of the compressor shell. Obviously, the value of the third preset opening can also be set to 25%, 30% or 40%, and this adjustment does not deviate from the principle of the present invention, and therefore will also fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0108] In S603, when the drying process is in the later stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature of the compressor detected by the first temperature sensor is lower than the first preset temperature threshold, the controller controls the driving unit to drive the door body from the fourth opening to the closed state to ensure the temperature of the compressor shell, thereby ensuring the refrigerant temperature in the compressor, and then ensuring the heating effect of the compressor until the heat pump dryer completes drying.

[0109] like Figure 8 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0110] S701: Determine the target drying temperature according to the current weight, initial weight and material of the clothes;

[0111] S702: Obtaining the current drying temperature inside the clothing care drum;

[0112] S703: adjusting the compression power of the compressor according to the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature, so that the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is less than or equal to a preset difference threshold.

[0113] In S701, during the specific implementation of the present invention, the inventors discovered that when the heat pump dryer is drying clothes, the target drying temperature inside the clothes processing drum that causes less damage to the clothes and has a faster drying speed will vary depending on the materials of the clothes. For example, when the clothes include clothes mainly made of cotton material and clothes mainly made of silk material, since cotton clothes have strong water absorption and are easy to shrink, in order to avoid shrinkage, the drying temperature inside the clothes processing drum can be controlled at 40°C-60°C. Silk clothes are delicate and soft and easily damaged. In order to reduce the risk of damage to clothes caused by drying clothes with a heat pump dryer, the drying temperature inside the clothes processing drum can be controlled at 30°C-40°C. Moreover, the inventors have also discovered that the target drying temperature suitable for drying clothes inside the clothing processing drum will also decrease as the moisture content of the clothes decreases. Therefore, in the process of drying clothes by the heat pump dryer of the present invention, in order to ensure the drying effect of the heat pump dryer while reducing the risk of damage to clothes by the heat pump dryer, the present invention determines the target drying temperature based on the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight of the clothes and the material of the clothes. This can ensure the service life of the clothes, thereby improving user satisfaction.

[0114] In S702, the second temperature sensor detects the current drying temperature inside the laundry processing drum.

[0115] In S703, during the process of drying clothes by the heat pump dryer, the compression power of the compressor is adjusted according to the determined target drying temperature of the heat pump dryer and the current drying temperature of the clothes treatment drum, so that the difference between the current drying temperature inside the clothes treatment drum and the target drying temperature of the heat pump dryer is always less than or equal to the preset difference threshold. It should be noted that the preset difference threshold can be determined by the designer based on experience, experiment, calculation, etc. For example, the preset difference threshold can be set to 1°C, 2°C or 3°C. Obviously, the preset difference threshold can also be other values. Such adjustment does not deviate from the principle of the present invention, and therefore will also fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0116] like Fig. 9 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0117] S801: calling a preset second mapping relationship table storing the correspondence between the current weight, initial weight and material of the clothes and the target drying temperature;

[0118] S802: Determine the target drying temperature according to the drying process, the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight and the material of the clothes and the second mapping relationship table.

[0119] In the specific implementation process of the present invention, the controller internally stores a second mapping relationship table of the correspondence between the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight of the clothes, the clothing material of the clothes and the target drying temperature, so that after the controller determines the information of the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight of the clothes and the clothing material of the clothes, the controller can compare the determined current weight, initial weight of the clothes and the clothing material of the clothes with the second mapping relationship table to determine the target drying temperature of the air in the clothing treatment drum of the heat pump dryer during the process of drying clothes.

[0120] like Fig.10 As shown, in a possible implementation manner, the control method of the clothing care device of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0121] S901: when the difference between the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature is greater than a difference threshold, reducing the compression power;

[0122] S902: When the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is greater than a difference threshold, increase the compression power.

[0123] In S901, when the difference between the current drying temperature in the clothes processing drum and the target drying temperature is greater than the preset difference threshold, it means that the air temperature in the clothes processing drum is high. At this time, it is necessary to reduce the power of the compressor to reduce the air temperature in the clothes processing drum, so that the difference between the current drying temperature in the clothes processing drum and the target drying temperature is less than the preset difference threshold. In this way, the drying effect of the heat pump dryer can be guaranteed, and the power consumption of the heat pump dryer can be reduced to a certain extent.

[0124] In S902, when the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature in the clothing processing drum is greater than the preset difference threshold, it means that the air temperature in the clothing processing drum is low. At this time, it is necessary to reduce the power of the compressor to reduce the air temperature in the clothing processing drum so that the difference between the current drying temperature in the clothing processing drum and the target drying temperature is less than the preset difference threshold. In this way, the drying effect of the heat pump dryer can be guaranteed.

[0125] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, although some embodiments described herein include certain features included in other embodiments but not other features, the combination of features of different embodiments is meant to be within the scope of the present application and form different embodiments. For example, in the claims of the present application, any one of the claimed embodiments may be used in any combination.

[0126] It should be noted that although the detailed steps of the method of the present application are described in detail above, without departing from the basic principles of the present application, technical personnel in this field can combine, split and change the order of the above steps. The modified technical solution does not change the basic concept of the present application and therefore falls within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0127] So far, the technical solutions of the present invention have been described in conjunction with the preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. However, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the protection scope of the present invention is obviously not limited to these specific embodiments. Without departing from the principle of the present invention, those skilled in the art can make equivalent changes or substitutions to the relevant technical features, and the technical solutions after these changes or substitutions will fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A control method for a heat pump dryer, characterized in that: The heat pump clothes dryer comprises a clothes processing drum, a drying air duct, a condenser, a compressor, an evaporator, a fan and a box, wherein the drying air duct and the clothes processing drum are configured as a circulation air duct, the fan is located in the circulation air duct, the evaporator is located upstream of the condenser, the compressor is located between the evaporator and the condenser, the box is sleeved outside the compressor, and the box has an opening with an adjustable opening, and the control method comprises: Acquiring clothing characteristics, wherein the clothing characteristics include an initial weight and a current weight of the clothing to be dried; Determining a drying process according to the clothing characteristics; The opening degree is adjusted according to the drying process to adjust the heat exchange efficiency between the compressor and the air in the circulating air duct, thereby improving the drying efficiency of the heat pump dryer.

2. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of "determining the drying process according to the clothing characteristics" includes: determining the moisture content of the laundry to be dried according to the initial weight and the current weight; The drying process is determined according to the moisture content.

3. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The clothing characteristics also include clothing material, and the step of "determining the drying process according to the clothing characteristics" includes: Calling a preset first mapping relationship table storing a correspondence between the clothing material, the initial weight, the current weight and the drying process; The drying process is determined according to the clothing material, the initial weight, the current weight and the first mapping relationship table.

4. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of "adjusting the opening according to the drying process" includes: Acquiring the exhaust temperature of the compressor; The opening degree is determined according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process.

5. The control method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The drying process includes an early drying stage and a late drying stage, and the step of "determining the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process" includes: Calling a preset first temperature threshold, a second temperature threshold, and a third temperature threshold, wherein the third temperature threshold>the second temperature threshold>the first temperature threshold; When the drying process is in the early stage of drying, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, closing the opening; If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a first preset opening degree; If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a second preset opening degree; If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened 100%.

6. The control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The step of "determining the opening degree according to the exhaust temperature and the drying process" also includes: When the drying process is in the late drying stage, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the second temperature threshold and less than the third temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a third preset opening degree; When the drying process is in the late drying stage, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperature threshold and less than the second temperature threshold, the opening is opened to a fourth preset opening degree; When the drying process is in the late drying stage, if the exhaust temperature is lower than the first temperature threshold, the opening is closed.

7. The control method according to claim 3, characterized in that: The control method further comprises: Determining a target drying temperature according to the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, and the material of the clothes; Obtaining the current drying temperature inside the clothing care drum; The compression power of the compressor is adjusted according to the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature, so that the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is less than or equal to a preset difference threshold.

8. The control method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The step of "determining the target drying temperature according to the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight and the material of the clothes" includes: Calling a preset second mapping relationship table storing a correspondence between the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, the material of the clothes and the target drying temperature; The target drying temperature is determined according to the drying process, the current weight of the clothes, the initial weight, the material of the clothes and the second mapping relationship table.

9. The control method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The control method further comprises: When the difference between the current drying temperature and the target drying temperature is greater than the difference threshold, reducing the compression power; When the difference between the target drying temperature and the current drying temperature is less than the difference threshold, the compression power is increased.

10. A heat pump clothes dryer, characterized in that: The heat pump dryer comprises a controller configured to execute the control method according to any one of claims 1-9.

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