Clothes dryer control method and device, storage medium and clothes dryer

Abstract

The invention provides a control method and device of a clothes dryer, a storage medium and the clothes dryer, the clothes dryer comprises a draught fan and a clothes drying cylinder, the clothes drying cylinder is provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, the air inlet is connected to an air inlet pipeline, the air outlet is connected to an air outlet pipeline, and in different stages of the clothes drying process, the air inlet is connected to the air outlet pipeline. And the air supply strategy is adjusted to control the air pressure in the air inlet pipeline to be within the set range. The air supply strategy is adjusted in different stages of the clothes drying process, the air pressure in the air inlet pipeline is controlled to be within the set range, the energy efficiency ratio of the clothes dryer can be increased, the energy consumption of the clothes dryer can be flexibly controlled according to actual requirements, unnecessary energy waste is reduced, and therefore energy is saved, and carbon emission is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of household appliances, and in particular relates to a control method, a device, a storage medium and a clothes dryer. Background Art

[0002] A clothes dryer is a device used to dry wet clothes after washing. Especially in areas with rainy and humid climates, it is often the case that washed clothes do not dry for a long time or even get moldy. Therefore, more and more families choose to use clothes dryers, which eliminates the step of drying clothes and saves space for drying clothes.

[0003] At present, there are direct-discharge, condensing and heat pump dryers on the market. Among them, direct-discharge dryers have a place in the market with their low prices. The principle of direct-discharge dryers is to use dry hot air to take away the moisture in the clothes after dehydration (evaporation), thereby drying the clothes.

[0004] In order to improve the drying efficiency of large loads, the existing dryers, especially large-capacity direct-discharge dryers, have relatively high air volume and thermal power. However, when the load invested by the user is small, the large air volume directly takes away the hot air, the drying efficiency is not high, and the heat is not fully utilized. It consumes energy and the effect is not good.

[0005] In view of this, the present invention is proposed. Summary of the invention

[0006] The main purpose of the present invention is to solve the above technical problems and to provide a control method, device, storage medium and dryer for a clothes dryer.

[0007] To achieve the above object, the technical solution of the present invention is:

[0008] The first technical solution of the present invention is a control method for a dryer, wherein the dryer includes a fan and a drying drum, wherein the drying drum is provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, wherein the air inlet is connected to an air inlet duct, and the air outlet is connected to an air outlet duct. At different stages of the drying process, the air supply strategy is adjusted to control the wind pressure in the air inlet duct within a set range.

[0009] In some implementations, the air supply strategy is adjusted by:

[0010] Adjust the fan speed;

[0011] And / or, adjust the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct.

[0012] In some embodiments, an air valve is provided in the air outlet or the air outlet duct, and the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct is adjusted by adjusting the opening of the air valve.

[0013] In some embodiments, the default air valve opening and default fan speed at different stages of the drying process are stored in the clothes dryer, and the clothes dryer adjusts the air valve opening at different stages according to the load.

[0014] In some embodiments, a pressure sensor for measuring the wind pressure in the air inlet duct is provided at the air outlet.

[0015] In some embodiments, the pressure sensor is also used to measure the pressure drop of the wind pressure near the air outlet, and to determine the load amount according to the pressure drop, or to adjust the opening of the air valve at different stages according to the pressure drop.

[0016] The second technical solution of the present invention is a control device for a dryer, comprising one or more processors and a computer-readable storage medium storing an executable program. When the one or more processors execute the executable program, the one or more processors are used to implement the control method for the dryer as described above.

[0017] The third technical solution of the present invention is a computer-readable storage medium, which stores an executable program, and is characterized in that: when the executable program is executed by one or more processors, the one or more processors are used to implement the dryer control method as described above.

[0018] A fourth technical solution of the present invention is a clothes dryer, comprising a fan and a clothes drying drum, characterized in that: the clothes dryer control method as described above is adopted, or the clothes dryer control device as described above is included, or the computer-readable storage medium as described above is included.

[0019] In some embodiments, the fan is a variable frequency fan.

[0020] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0021] 1. The present invention can improve the energy efficiency ratio of the dryer by adjusting the air supply strategy at different stages of the drying process to control the wind pressure in the air inlet duct within a set range, and can flexibly control the energy consumption of the dryer according to actual needs, thereby reducing unnecessary energy waste, thereby saving energy and reducing carbon emissions.

[0022] 2. The present invention adjusts the air valve opening and the fan speed at different stages of the drying process, and can automatically adjust the air supply strategy of the dryer according to the load of clothes, so that the clothes can be properly dried and the drying effect is improved.

[0023] 3. The present invention can monitor the wind pressure in the air inlet pipe in real time by setting a pressure sensor at the air outlet. According to the measurement result of the pressure sensor, the air valve opening can be detected and adjusted in time to avoid failure or damage caused by excessive wind pressure. At the same time, the pressure sensor can also be used to monitor the wind pressure drop near the air outlet, and the load of clothes can be judged according to the pressure drop, or it can be used as a basis for adjusting the air valve opening, thereby improving the safety of the dryer and the user experience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The accompanying drawings are part of the present invention and are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention. The exemplary embodiments of the present invention and their descriptions are used to explain the present invention, but do not constitute an improper limitation of the present invention. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. In the accompanying drawings:

[0025] Figure 1 It is a flow chart of the present invention.

[0026] It should be noted that these drawings and textual descriptions are not intended to limit the conceptual scope of the present invention in any way, but are intended to illustrate the concept of the present invention for those skilled in the art by referring to specific embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0028] [Example 1]

[0029] The present embodiment provides a control method for a clothes dryer, wherein the clothes dryer comprises a fan and a clothes drying drum, wherein an air inlet and an air outlet are provided on the clothes drying drum, wherein the air inlet is connected to an air inlet duct, and the air outlet is connected to an air outlet duct. At different stages of the drying process, the air supply strategy is adjusted to control the wind pressure in the air inlet duct within a set range.

[0030] The control method of this embodiment is particularly suitable for direct-discharge clothes dryers. The working principle of a direct-discharge clothes dryer is similar to that of a hair dryer, which uses hot air flow to remove moisture from clothes. Hot air blows into the rotating inner drum to remove moisture from the clothes, and the hot air with moisture is discharged from the exhaust pipe. In this embodiment, the drying process is divided into three stages:

[0031] The first stage is the initial stage of drying. In this stage, the water content of the load is very high and it is difficult to evaporate the water. At this time, it is necessary to quickly heat up and evaporate the water quickly;

[0032] The second stage is the efficient drying stage, when the load contains a high amount of moisture, requiring a higher temperature to evaporate the moisture, and fast-flowing air to quickly carry away the moisture;

[0033] The third stage is the drying stage, when the moisture content of the load is low and the maximum air volume is required to completely dry the clothes.

[0034] At different stages, the drying pressure in the clothes dryer is in different ranges. Based on the laboratory experimental data, the drying efficiency at different drying pressures can be obtained, so as to summarize the optimal drying pressure range at different stages of the drying process and store it in the control system of the clothes dryer. Furthermore, the optimal drying pressure range data can also be stored in the cloud server, and the control system of the clothes dryer can exchange data with the cloud server through the network. This is a design that can be made by those skilled in the art and will not be repeated here.

[0035] In some implementations, the air supply strategy is adjusted by:

[0036] Adjust the fan speed;

[0037] And / or, adjust the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct.

[0038] Furthermore, an air valve is provided at the air outlet or in the air outlet pipeline, and the ventilation volume of the air outlet pipeline is adjusted by adjusting the opening of the air valve.

[0039] When the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct remains unchanged, the air supply volume can be changed by adjusting the fan speed, thereby changing the drying pressure; when the fan speed remains unchanged, the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct can be adjusted by adjusting the air valve opening, thereby changing the size of the air outlet duct, and changing the size of the air duct under the premise of unchanged air supply volume, thereby changing the drying pressure; or simultaneously changing the fan speed and the ventilation volume of the ventilation duct to maintain or change the drying pressure. Preferably, the air valve and the fan are both connected to the control system of the dryer, and the opening of the air valve and the speed of the fan are controlled by the control system. The connection here can be a wired connection or a wireless connection through infrared, Bluetooth, microwave, etc., without specific limitation.

[0040] In some embodiments, the clothes dryer stores the default air valve opening and default fan speed at different stages of the drying process. Under the default air valve opening and default fan speed, the clothes dryer theoretically reaches the optimal drying pressure range, but because there is a load in the dryer drum, the amount and material of the load may affect the fluidity of the air, and thus have a great impact on the wind pressure and air volume. Therefore, in some actual embodiments, the clothes dryer adjusts the air valve opening at different stages according to the load, and then adjusts the drying pressure to the optimal drying pressure by adjusting the fan speed.

[0041] Specifically, in the first stage, since the temperature needs to rise quickly, the air should not flow quickly, and a lower drying pressure is required in the first stage. Therefore, in the first stage, regardless of whether the load is large or small, the air valve opening is set to the smaller first opening by default, and the fan speed is set to a low speed by default, so that the air can flow at a low speed, heat up quickly, and effectively reduce the fan speed and power consumption;

[0042] In the second stage, since a higher temperature is required to evaporate the water, and fast-flowing air is required to quickly carry away the water, the second stage requires a higher drying pressure and a higher air volume. Therefore, in the second stage, the air valve opening is set to the moderate second opening by default, and the fan speed is set to the medium speed by default, so that the air can circulate quickly. Furthermore, when the load of the dryer is large or the air permeability of the load is poor, in order to make the air flow as quickly as possible, the air valve opening is increased and adjusted according to the load or the air permeability of the load, and the fan speed is adjusted until the pressure returns to the optimal drying pressure range. Similarly, when the load of the dryer is small or the air permeability of the load is very good, the air valve opening will be appropriately reduced and adjusted, and the fan speed will be adjusted until the pressure returns to the optimal drying pressure range.

[0043] In the third stage, which is about to dry, since the maximum air volume is required to thoroughly dry the clothes, the third stage requires a higher drying pressure and a higher air volume. Therefore, in the third stage, the air valve opening is set to a larger third opening by default, and the fan speed is set to a high speed by default, so that the air flows at a high speed to remove moisture to the greatest extent. Furthermore, when the load of the dryer is large or the air permeability of the load is poor, the opening of the air valve is increased or directly opened to the maximum according to the load or the air permeability of the load, and the fan speed is adjusted to restore the pressure to the optimal drying pressure range or the fan speed is adjusted to the maximum. Similarly, when the load of the dryer is small or the air permeability of the load is very good, the opening of the air valve will be appropriately reduced, and the fan speed may also be reduced, so that the drying load can be dried most efficiently regardless of whether it is large or small.

[0044] In some embodiments, a table of air valve openings corresponding to different load amounts at different stages of the drying process is stored in the dryer. When the drying program is executed, after obtaining the load amount, the air valve opening can be quickly confirmed by looking up the table, which effectively improves the drying efficiency.

[0045] In some embodiments, a pressure sensor for measuring the wind pressure in the air inlet duct is provided at the air outlet. The wind pressure sensor is used to measure the current wind pressure in the air inlet duct and is compared with the optimal drying pressure range stored in the control system of the dryer. The wind pressure is then adjusted by adjusting the fan speed.

[0046] In some embodiments, the pressure sensor provided at the air outlet can also be used to measure the pressure drop of the wind pressure near the air outlet. According to the Bernoulli equation, a pressure drop will be generated when air enters the larger drying drum from the smaller air inlet channel. When the air flow is obstructed, the pressure drop will be reduced due to the obstruction. In daily use, the fluidity of the air in the dryer is directly related to the load therein. A large load will inevitably reduce the air fluidity. Therefore, in some embodiments, the load can be judged according to the pressure drop, and then the air valve opening at different stages can be adjusted according to the load pressure drop. This can simplify the structure of the dryer and eliminate the setting of the weighing module.

[0047] Furthermore, as the drying process continues, the load at each stage is different. This data is related to the efficiency of the dryer itself and the water absorption of the clothing fabric. Therefore, if the air supply strategy is adjusted based on the initial value of the load, it is often inaccurate. Therefore, in some embodiments, the load is initially determined at each stage of the drying process, and then the air supply strategy is adjusted based on the load. It should be noted that the relationship between the pressure drop and the load is often not a simple linear relationship. The corresponding relationship can be analyzed through a large amount of experimental data and stored in the dryer control system or in the cloud server.

[0048] In some implementations, the air valve opening at different stages may also be directly adjusted according to the pressure drop, which makes the control simpler.

[0049] In some implementations, the air valve opening at different stages may be adjusted based on a comprehensive analysis of the pressure drop and the load, thereby reducing the measurement error caused by the air permeability of the clothing fabric.

[0050] [Example 2]

[0051] The second technical solution of the present invention is a control device for a dryer, comprising one or more processors and a computer-readable storage medium storing an executable program. When one or more processors execute the executable program, the one or more processors are used to implement the above-mentioned control method for the dryer.

[0052] [Example 3]

[0053] The third technical solution of the present invention is a computer-readable storage medium, which stores an executable program, and is characterized in that: when the executable program is executed by one or more processors, the one or more processors are used to implement the above-mentioned dryer control method.

[0054] [Example 4]

[0055] A fourth technical solution of the present invention is a clothes dryer, comprising a fan and a clothes drying drum, characterized in that: the control method of the clothes dryer as above is adopted, or the control device of the clothes dryer as above is included, or the computer-readable storage medium as above is included.

[0056] In some embodiments, the fan is a variable frequency fan.

[0057] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0058] 1. The present invention can improve the energy efficiency ratio of the dryer by adjusting the air supply strategy at different stages of the drying process to control the wind pressure in the air inlet duct within a set range, and can flexibly control the energy consumption of the dryer according to actual needs, reduce unnecessary energy waste, thereby saving energy and reducing carbon emissions.

[0059] 2. The present invention adjusts the air valve opening and the fan speed at different stages of the drying process, and can automatically adjust the air supply strategy of the dryer according to the load of clothes, so that the clothes can be properly dried and the drying effect is improved.

[0060] 3. The present invention can monitor the wind pressure in the air inlet pipe in real time by setting a pressure sensor at the air outlet. According to the measurement result of the pressure sensor, the air valve opening can be detected and adjusted in time to avoid failure or damage caused by excessive wind pressure. At the same time, the pressure sensor can also be used to monitor the wind pressure drop near the air outlet, and the load of clothes can be judged according to the pressure drop, or it can be used as a basis for adjusting the air valve opening, thereby improving the safety of the dryer and the user experience.

[0061] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, 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 an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0062] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "left", "right", "inside", "outside", "top", "bottom", etc. indicate directions or positional relationships based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction. Therefore, they should not be understood as limitations on the present invention.

[0063] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "plurality" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0064] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "example", "specific example", or "some examples" etc. means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner. In addition, those skilled in the art may combine and combine the different embodiments or examples described in this specification and the features of the different embodiments or examples, without contradiction.

[0065] As described above, similar technical solutions can be derived from the scheme contents given in the accompanying drawings. However, any simple modification, equivalent changes and modifications made to the above embodiments according to the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the contents of the technical scheme of the present invention still fall within the scope of the technical scheme of the present invention.

Claims

1. A control method for a clothes dryer, the clothes dryer comprising a fan and a clothes drying drum, the clothes drying drum being provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, the air inlet being connected to an air inlet pipeline, and the air outlet being connected to an air outlet pipeline, characterized in that: At different stages of the drying process, the air supply strategy is adjusted to control the air pressure in the air inlet duct within the set range.

2. The control method of a clothes dryer according to claim 1, characterized in that: Ways to adjust the air supply strategy include: Adjust the fan speed; And / or, adjust the ventilation volume of the air outlet duct.

3. A control method for a clothes dryer as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that: An air valve is provided in the air outlet or the air outlet pipeline, and the ventilation volume of the air outlet pipeline is adjusted by adjusting the opening of the air valve.

4. A control method for a clothes dryer as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that: The clothes dryer stores the default air valve opening and the default fan speed at different stages of the drying process, and the clothes dryer adjusts the air valve opening at different stages according to the load.

5. A control method for a clothes dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: A pressure sensor for measuring the wind pressure in the air inlet duct is arranged at the air outlet.

6. A control method for a clothes dryer as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that: The pressure sensor is also used to measure the pressure drop of the wind pressure near the air outlet, and to judge the load according to the pressure drop, or to adjust the opening of the air valve at different stages according to the pressure drop.

7. A control device for a clothes dryer, comprising one or more processors and a computer-readable storage medium storing an executable program, characterized in that: When the one or more processors execute the executable program, the one or more processors are used to implement the control method of the dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A computer-readable storage medium storing an executable program, characterized in that: When the executable program is executed by one or more processors, the one or more processors are used to implement the dryer control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A clothes dryer, comprising a fan and a clothes drying drum, characterized in that: The control method of the clothes dryer as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 is adopted, or the control device of the clothes dryer as claimed in claim 7 is included, or the computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 8 is included.

10. A clothes dryer according to claim 9, characterized in that: The fan is a variable frequency fan.

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