Dosing container for laundry drum for replacing flush-in carrier shell

Abstract

The invention relates to a dosing container for a water-conducting household appliance, in particular for a washing machine or a laundry dryer, for dosing a fabric care agent in a laundry drum, having a container base, a container cover and at least one container wall, which form a receiving space, the container cover and / or the at least one container wall are / is configured to release a passage to the accommodating space in order to fill the accommodating space with a fabric care agent, and wherein at least one gauze element is embedded at least partially in the at least one container wall and / or the container cover, the gauze element is configured to be permeable to water and to a fabric care agent dissolved in the water. The invention also relates to a method for using the dosing container in a household appliance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a dosing container for a water-conducting household appliance, in particular for a washing machine or a washer-dryer For dosing a fabric care agent in a laundry drum, the dosing container comprises a container bottom, a container cover and at least one container wall, wherein the container bottom, the container cover and the at least one container wall form a receiving space. In addition, the invention also relates to a method for using a dosing container in a household appliance. Background Art

[0002] In water-conducting household appliances such as washing machines and washer-dryers, the flushing tray fulfills several functions and is a key component in the laundry process. Its main function is to temporarily store the detergent that is manually dosed by the user and then flush it into the drum or the laundry drum at a specific time. In addition, the detergent can be initially dissolved in the flushing tray.

[0003] Usually, the flush tray has a three-chamber design and has a pre-wash chamber, a softener chamber and a main wash chamber. Most washing machines available on the market are equipped with such a flush tray. However, the problem with the flush tray to date is that it takes up a lot of space in the upper area of ​​the household appliance. This limits the design freedom in the area of ​​the front panel and the control of the household appliance and limits the space for other components of the household appliance, such as operating elements.

[0004] Furthermore, household appliances are known which are equipped with automatic dosing devices which completely replace the conventional flushing tray and dosing the detergent themselves. The user only needs to add the detergent and optionally the softener to the built-in storage container. Usually, when buying a household appliance, the user must decide whether to dose the detergent manually or automatically with the aid of a dosing device. It is usually not possible to dose the detergent manually or automatically in the same household appliance, because the automatic dosing system also takes up space in the flushing tray. Summary of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is therefore to provide a dosing container for manually dosing detergents, which allows for more efficient use of space in household appliances. This object is achieved by a dosing container having the features of claim 1 and by a method having the features of claim 11.

[0006] According to one aspect of the invention, a dosing container for a water-conducting household appliance, in particular a washing machine or a washer-dryer, is provided. The dosing container is configured to achieve dosing of a fabric care agent in a laundry drum. Instead of flushing into a housing, the dosing container is placed in the laundry drum. Depending on the configuration, a plurality of dosing containers can also be arranged in the laundry drum of the household appliance, for example for carrying out a cleaning program or a care program.

[0007] This dosing container has container bottom, container cover and at least one container wall, and they form accommodating space.At this, accommodating space can be surrounded by container bottom, container cover and at least one container wall.

[0008] Depending on the configuration, the container cover and / or the container bottom can be designed as a polygon or a circle. In the case where the container cover and / or the container bottom are designed as a circle, the container wall can already be sufficient to form a peripheral surface for connecting the container cover to the container bottom. And form a holding space.

[0009] When the container cover and / or the container bottom are designed to be rectangular, a plurality of mutually connected straight or curved container walls may be provided to connect the container cover and the container bottom and form a receiving space.

[0010] In addition, the container cover and / or at least one container wall are configured to at least temporarily release the passage (Zugang) leading to the receiving space, so that the receiving space is filled with the fabric care agent. Here, a variety of different fabric care agents can also be placed in the receiving space.

[0011] Depending on the configuration, the receiving space can be designed as a single piece or as multiple pieces, for example to separate different fabric care products from one another.

[0012] At least one gauze element (gaze) is embedded at least in regions in at least one container wall and / or container lid, which gauze element is designed to be permeable to water and the fabric care agent dissolved in the water.

[0013] The gauze element is at least partially designed as a grid or screen and has openings or meshes of a certain size, through which the gauze element is permeable to liquid and powdered fabric care agents in dissolved form. For example, the gauze element can have openings with an average diameter of 800 μm to 2000 μm. The gauze element can be connected to the container wall, for example, by means of a material connection or a form-locking connection, or can be designed as an integral component of the container wall. In this case, at least one gauze element can be made of metal and / or plastic, such as a polymer.

[0014] The dosing container is designed for dosing solid and / or liquid fabric care agents. Fabric care agents can be, for example, solid (or powdered) detergents, liquid detergents, softeners, dyes, cleaners for household appliances, descaling agents, and the like. The dosing device is preferably used as a flushing receptacle, which can be integrated in a door of a household appliance that can be opened or closed in a laterally pivotable manner.

[0015] According to another aspect of the invention, a method for operating a household appliance having a dosing container according to the invention or a method for using a dosing container according to the invention is provided. In one step, a fabric care agent is introduced into an exposed or open receiving space of a dosing container and then the receiving space is closed.

[0016] In a further step, the metering container is positioned in the laundry drum of the domestic appliance and the door of the domestic appliance is closed in order to produce the sealing effect of the door seal of the domestic appliance.

[0017] Then start the operating program of the household appliance, wherein the water introduced into the laundry drum is introduced into the receiving space of the dosing container via the gauze piece, so as to dissolve the fabric care agent by means of water. Subsequently, the fabric care agent dissolved by water is controlled to be drawn out from the receiving space via the gauze piece.

[0018] Therefore, the dosing container according to the invention can be positioned in the laundry drum of a household appliance alone or together with textiles after the fabric care agent is filled or injected into the receiving space.Then, the operating program of the household appliance is executed using the dosing container.

[0019] By means of the method and the dosing container according to the invention, the user can quickly and easily dose his fabric care agent (e.g. washing powder) and use it in the laundry drum. Due to the preferably flat lower surface of the container bottom (or base plate), which faces away from the receiving space, the dosing container can be placed on a flat surface and filled in a particularly convenient manner. The lower surface can thus be configured as a support surface for the dosing container. The use of the dosing container according to the invention reduces the number of operations required for dosing and saves the user time to the greatest extent possible, without depriving the user of the freedom to choose the fabric care agent used. Therefore, the dosing container according to the invention can also be used particularly advantageously in household appliances equipped with an automatic dosing device for manual dosing of fabric care agents.

[0020] If the dosing container is configured for use with the fabric care agent filled in the laundry drum of a domestic appliance, the use of a conventional flushing receptacle with a three-chamber design can be dispensed with.

[0021] If the container wall is substantially cylindrical and partially or completely configured as a gauze piece, the dosing container can be manufactured in a particularly simple technical manner. Here, the container wall can be formed in one piece from the gauze piece and at least partially mechanically reinforced or designed to be rigid to enable a detachable connection of the container wall to the container bottom and / or the container lid.

[0022] According to another embodiment, the container wall can be detachably connected to the container bottom and / or the container cover by screwing and / or plugging. Thus, the container bottom and / or the container cover can be screwed onto the cylindrically shaped container wall to close or open the receiving space. In this case, the container wall can have connecting sections on the axial end side, which can engage with corresponding connecting sections on the container cover and / or the container bottom.

[0023] In contrast, screwing can be understood as engaging an internal thread with an external thread or realizing a bayonet connection by means of corresponding rails and / or pins. The corresponding connecting section can be arranged in a freely selectable manner on the container wall (or on the container wall side) or on the cover side of the container cover or on the bottom side of the container bottom.

[0024] In a technically particularly simple design, the container wall can be plugged into a corresponding connecting section of the container bottom and / or the container wall at the axial end side. The connection between the container wall and the container bottom and / or the container cover can be locked by means of a snap-on and / or friction closure.

[0025] If container wall and container bottom or container wall and container cover are configured as one-piece parts or are connected to each other in a material-locked manner, the manufacture of the dosing container can be further simplified. By this measure, only a connecting section is needed to open the accommodating space.

[0026] According to another embodiment, the container bottom has a support surface on the outside and, on the side opposite the support surface, a connecting section extending on the circumference for connecting to the container wall. The dosing container can thus be placed comfortably on the support surface in order to fill the receiving space through the opening released by the container cover. The container wall can preferably be inserted into the connecting section of the container bottom extending on the circumference and connected to the container bottom (for example by gluing or welding).

[0027] If the container bottom has at least one discharge opening, wherein the side of the container bottom opposite to the support surface has a slope or drop toward the at least one discharge opening Then, after the operation program of the household appliance is completed, the formation of lasting accumulation materials in the receiving space can be avoided, and the sanitary condition of the dosing device can be optimized. Here, at least one container opening can have a diameter between 0.5 mm and 3.0 mm to avoid or at least slow down uncontrolled outflow.

[0028] According to another embodiment, the container bottom and / or the container cover and / or the container wall can be completely removed or lifted up to provide access to the container. Therefore, the access to the accommodation space can be flexibly realized and variously designed.

[0029] If the container wall can be connected to the container bottom on its outer surface on the edge side or in a connecting groove, the dosing container can be produced in a technically simple manner and / or the access to the receiving space can be opened in a technically particularly simple manner. Thus, the container wall can overlap the container bottom radially, for example in the region of the axial edge section, to achieve a material-locking or screwed connection.

[0030] According to another embodiment, the storage space is divided into at least two storage sections by at least one partition wall. Preferably, at least one first mesh piece is configured to connect the first storage section to the surroundings of the dosing container, and at least one second mesh piece is configured to connect the second storage section to the surroundings of the dosing container.

[0031] Here, a plurality of different fabric care agents can also be placed in the receiving space. Depending on the configuration, the receiving space can be one-piece or multi-piece, for example, in order to separate different fabric care agents from one another. The corresponding gauze elements can have different mesh sizes, in order to speed up or slow down the water transfer in different receiving sections.

[0032] For example, for the receiving section for liquid fabric care agents, a particularly fine mesh element with a mesh size of less than 1000 μm can be provided in order to retain the liquid fabric care agent in a receiving section of the receiving space when the laundry drum is loaded. This configuration can also be used for an integrated receiving space if, for example, the metering container is designed to receive the liquid fabric care agent and to meter it during the operating program of the domestic appliance (or to release it in the form of washing lye). Possible mesh elements suitable for powdered or solid fabric care agents can have a mesh size of, for example, more than 1000 μm.

[0033] The dosing container according to the invention can be designed, for example, in the form of a gaze ball and can quickly and easily place the detergent in the position of use and hold it in the receiving space before the action of water. The fabric care agent can then escape through the gauze elements on all or some of the sides of the container wall as soon as it is converted into lye by the action of water.

[0034] The advantages and features described above in conjunction with the device may also be applied analogously to the method, and vice versa. The individual features or aspects of the present invention may be combined with each other and have the advantages described in this regard. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0036] Figure 1 A household appliance having a dosing container according to the invention is shown in a side sectional view according to one embodiment.

[0037] Figure 2 A schematic sectional view is shown for illustrating a dosing container according to a first embodiment.

[0038] Figure 3 Shown for illustration Figure 1 A top view and a sectional view of a container lid of a dosing container are shown.

[0039] Figure 4A and Figure 4B Shown for illustration Figure 1 A top view and a sectional view of the container bottom of a dosing container are shown.

[0040] Figure 5 A schematic sectional view is shown for illustrating a dosing container according to a second embodiment.

[0041] In the drawings, the same or mutually corresponding elements are marked with the same reference symbols. For the purpose of clarity and improved recognizability, different scales are used in some of the drawings. For the sake of brevity, details not related to the invention are omitted in these drawings and the illustrations are simplified. The drawings are merely schematic and should not be understood as limiting the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] Figure 1A side sectional view of a household appliance 100 with a dosing container 10 according to a first embodiment is shown. The household appliance 100 can be designed in the form of a so-called front-loading washing machine or a washer-dryer. In particular, the household appliance 100 can be equipped with an automatic dosing device instead of a conventional flushing container for manually dosing fabric care agents. In the embodiment shown, a dosing container 10 is used. Figures 2 to 5 The dosing container 10 described in detail in the invention enables manual dosing of fabric care agents. The household appliance 100 with the dosing container 10 is used in particular to illustrate the method according to the invention.

[0043] The household appliance 100 has a door 110. The door 110 is used to open the passage to the laundry drum 120. The textiles 200 to be treated by the household appliance 100 are exemplarily positioned or placed in the laundry drum 120. The inner side of the door 110 is configured to press on the door sealing ring 114 or door sealing cup of the household appliance 100 for closing the opening for filling the laundry drum 120 in a fluid-tight manner.

[0044] The dosing container 10 is filled with at least one fabric care agent and is likewise placed in the laundry drum 120 adjacent to the textiles 200. The door 110 is then closed and an operating program of the household appliance 100 is started (for example via the operating panel 130). In the process, water is introduced into the laundry drum 120 to wet the textiles 200. This water also enters the dosing container 10 and dissolves the fabric care agent in order to treat the textiles 200 with the resulting alkaline solution.

[0045] Figure 2 A schematic cross-sectional view of a dosing container 10 according to a first embodiment is shown. The dosing container 10 is configured to enable dosing of fabric care agents in a laundry drum 120. The dosing container 10 is placed in the laundry drum 120 instead of being flushed into a housing. Depending on the configuration, a plurality of dosing containers can also be arranged in the laundry drum 120 of the household appliance 100, for example for carrying out a cleaning program or a care program.

[0046] The dosing container 10 has a container bottom 21, a container cover 22 and at least one container wall 23, which together form a receiving space 30. The receiving space 30 can be surrounded by the container bottom 21, the container cover 22 and the at least one container wall 23. Figure 2 The arrows shown illustrate the passage 20 leading to the receiving space 30 of the dosing container 10 .

[0047] Depending on the configuration, the container cover and / or the container bottom can be designed as a polygon or a circle. In the illustrated embodiment, the container cover 22 and the container bottom 21 are designed as a circle, so that the container wall 23 is integrally configured as a cylinder and forms the circumference of the dosing container 10. The container wall 23 connects the container cover 22 and the container bottom 21. Here, the container wall 23 is substantially configured as a gauze member 24, which holds the liquid and / or powdered fabric care agent in the receiving space 30.

[0048] The mesh element 24 is designed in the form of a grid and has a mesh size in the range of 800 μm to 2000 μm. Water and the fabric care agent dissolved by the water can pass through the mesh element 24 and thus enter and exit the receiving space 30 through the mesh element 24. The movement of the laundry drum 120 helps dissolve the fabric care agent in the receiving space 30 of the metering container 10.

[0049] exist Figure 4A The cross-sectional view and Figure 4B The container bottom 21 shown in the top view of FIG. 1 has a support surface 25 on the outside and a connecting section 31 extending on the circumference on the side opposite the support surface 25. The connecting section 31 on the bottom side is designed as a groove, into which the container wall 23 can extend on the axial end side to form an adhesive connection or a welded connection.

[0050] Furthermore, the container bottom 21 has discharge openings 40 and a drop toward these discharge openings 40 to prevent the formation of accumulated material. These discharge openings 40 can have a diameter of less than 2 mm, for example. The drop is formed, for example, by a so-called Petri dish shape.

[0051] The dosing container 10 can be placed on the support surface 25 of the container bottom 21 in order to fill the receiving space 30 with the fabric care agent. For this purpose, a container cover 22 is provided, which can be detachably connected to the container wall 23. In the embodiment shown, Figure 3 The top view and the sectional view of the container cover 22 are shown. The container cover 22 has a connecting section 32 on the cover side, which is threaded and can be mechanically engaged with an edge section (not shown) on the axial end side of the container wall 23 in order to close the receiving space 30 by the container cover 22.

[0052] In the embodiment shown, the connecting section 32 on the cover side is arranged in a circumferential depression. A gripping recess 26 is arranged on the container cover 22 for rotating the container cover 22 to open or close the receiving space 30. Alternatively or additionally, the gripping recess 26 can also be arranged on the radial edge or side of the container cover 22.

[0053] Figure 5A schematic sectional view is shown for illustrating a dosing container 10 according to a second embodiment. In contrast to the first exemplary embodiment, the dosing container 10 has a partition wall 27 which divides the receiving space 30 into two receiving spaces or receiving sections 33 , 34 .

[0054] In order to control the dissolution behavior of the fabric care agent in the individual receiving sections 33 , 34 , the container wall 23 is provided with gauzes 24 , 28 having different mesh sizes.

[0055] For example, for the first receiving section 33 of the liquid fabric care agent, a particularly fine mesh element 24 with a mesh size of less than 1000 μm is provided in order to retain the liquid fabric care agent in the first receiving section 33 of the receiving space 30 when the laundry drum 120 is loaded. The first receiving section 33 may not be provided with a discharge opening 40.

[0056] In contrast, the second receiving section 34 can be configured, for example, for a powdered fabric care agent. A possible second mesh element 28 suitable for powdered or solid fabric care agents can have a mesh size of, for example, more than 1000 μm. The second receiving section 34 can have a discharge opening 40 .

[0057] Reference numerals list

[0058] 100-Household appliances

[0059] 110-Door

[0060] 114-Door seal

[0061] 120-Washing drum

[0062] 130-Operation panel

[0063] 200-Textiles

[0064] 10- Dosing container

[0065] 21-Container bottom

[0066] 22-Container cover

[0067] 23-Container wall

[0068] 24-Gauze mesh / first gauze mesh

[0069] 25-Support surface

[0070] 26-Grip recess

[0071] 27-Partition wall

[0072] 28-Second mesh piece

[0073] 30-Accommodation space

[0074] 31 - connection section on the bottom side

[0075] 32 - connection section on cover side

[0076] 33-First accommodating section

[0077] 34- Second Accommodation Section

[0078] 40-Discharge opening

Claims

1. A dosing container (10) for a water-conducting household appliance (100), in particular for a washing machine or a washer-dryer, the dosing container being used for dosing a fabric care agent in a laundry drum (120), the dosing container comprising a container bottom (21), a container cover (22) and at least one container wall (23), the container bottom, the container cover and the at least one container wall forming a receiving space (30), in, The container cover (22) and / or at least one container wall (23) are configured to release a passage (20) to the receiving space (30) in order to fill the receiving space (30) with a fabric care agent, In the at least one container wall (23) and / or the container cover (22), at least one gauze element (24, 28) is at least partially embedded, the gauze element being configured to be permeable to water and to a fabric care agent dissolved in the water.

2. The dosing container according to claim 1, wherein: The dosing container (10) is configured to be placed into a laundry drum (120) of the household appliance (100) together with the fabric care agent filled therein.

3. The dosing container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The container wall (23) is substantially cylindrical in shape and is partially or completely designed as a mesh element (24).

4. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The container wall (23) can be detachably connected to the container bottom (21) and / or the container cover (22) by screwing and / or plugging.

5. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The container wall (23) and the container bottom (21) or the container wall (23) and the container cover (22) are designed as a one-piece component or are connected to each other in a material-locking manner.

6. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: The container bottom (21) has a support surface (25) on the outside and, on the side opposite the support surface (25), a connecting section (31) extending on the circumference for connecting to the container wall (23).

7. The dosing container according to claim 6, wherein: The container bottom (21) has at least one discharge opening (40), wherein a side of the container bottom (21) opposite to the support surface (25) has a drop in height in the direction of the at least one discharge opening (40).

8. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The receiving space (30) is accessible by completely removing or by lifting up the container bottom (21) and / or the container cover (22) and / or the container wall (23).

9. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein: The container wall (23) can be connected to the container bottom (21) on its outer surface on the edge side or in a connecting groove.

10. The dosing container according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: The receiving space (30) is divided into at least two receiving sections (33, 34) by at least one partition wall (27), wherein at least one first gauze member (24) is configured to connect the first receiving section (33) to the surroundings of the dosing container (10), and at least one second gauze member (28) is configured to connect the second receiving section (34) to the surroundings of the dosing container (10).

11. A method for operating a household appliance (100) having a dosing container (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein: - filling the fabric care agent into the open receiving space (30) of the dosing container (10) and closing the receiving space (30), - positioning the dosing container (10) in the laundry drum (120) of the household appliance (100) and closing the door (110) of the household appliance (100) to establish the sealing effect of the door seal (114) of the household appliance (100), - starting an operating program of the household appliance (100), wherein water introduced into the laundry drum (120) is introduced into the receiving space (30) of the metering container (10) via at least one mesh element (24, 28) to dissolve a fabric care agent, wherein the fabric care agent dissolved by the water is led out of the receiving space (30) via the mesh element (24, 28).

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