Drying device and washing machine

Abstract

The utility model discloses a drying device and a washing machine. The drying device comprises a shell, a support and a plurality of thick film heating pipes. The support is detachably connected to the shell and located in the shell, and a plurality of installation grooves are formed in the support. The thick film heating pipes are arranged in the shell, the multiple thick film heating pipes are arranged at intervals in the left-right direction, the multiple thick film heating pipes correspond to the multiple installation grooves in a one-to-one mode, the thick film heating pipes are erected in the installation grooves, and the thick film heating pipes are detachably connected with the support. When one thick film heating pipe is damaged, the single damaged thick film heating pipe can be replaced, the whole drying device does not need to be replaced, and the cost is reduced; and if the damaged thick film heating pipe needs to be maintained, the other thick film heating pipes can still work after the damaged thick film heating pipe is detached, so that the failure of the whole drying device is avoided, and the redundant fault tolerance is realized. The drying device is high in maintainability, the thick film heating pipe is fast and convenient to disassemble and assemble, and local parts can be replaced to replace whole machine scrapping.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of washing machine technology, and in particular to a drying device and a washing machine. Background Technology

[0002] Traditional washing machine dryer heating elements use a fixed, integrated structure, making assembly complex and difficult. Damage to these elements necessitates stopping the machine and disassembling the entire heating module, resulting in high repair costs, long repair times, and the potential for system failure from a single point of failure. Furthermore, traditional heating elements cannot be partially replaced due to limitations in their encapsulation process, forcing users to bear the high cost of replacing the entire machine. Utility Model Content

[0003] This utility model aims to at least partially solve one of the technical problems in related technologies. To this end, this utility model proposes a drying device and a washing machine.

[0004] In a first aspect, this utility model provides a drying device, the drying device comprising:

[0005] The housing has an air inlet and an air outlet;

[0006] A bracket is detachably connected to the housing, the bracket is located inside the housing, and the bracket is provided with multiple mounting slots;

[0007] A thick-film heating element is disposed inside the housing. Multiple thick-film heating elements are spaced apart in the left-right direction. Each thick-film heating element corresponds to a different mounting groove. The thick-film heating element is placed in the mounting groove and is detachably connected to the bracket.

[0008] According to some embodiments of the present invention, one side of the bracket is recessed and the corresponding other side protrudes to form the mounting groove, the mounting groove is arc-shaped and the bottom of the groove is attached to the outer peripheral wall of the thick film heating tube.

[0009] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the bracket has multiple supports, which are spaced apart along the front-back direction.

[0010] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the bracket is provided with shock-absorbing frames at both ends. The shock-absorbing frames include a first frame arranged vertically and a second frame arranged horizontally. The upper end of the first frame is fixedly connected to the bracket, and the second frame is connected to the lower end of the first frame. The second frame is connected to the bottom of the housing through a shock-absorbing spring.

[0011] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the housing includes a bottom cover and a top cover, the bottom cover and the top cover are detachably connected, and the bracket and the bottom cover are fixedly connected by bolts.

[0012] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the top cover is provided with a plurality of first lugs distributed along the circumference of the top cover; the bottom cover is provided with a plurality of second lugs distributed along the circumference of the bottom cover, the plurality of first lugs and the plurality of second lugs correspond one-to-one, the lower end face of the first lugs is attached to the upper end face of the second lugs, and the first lugs and the second lugs are fixedly connected by bolts.

[0013] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the upper end face of the bottom cover is provided with a positioning groove, the lower end face of the top cover is provided with a positioning strip, the positioning strip is inserted into the positioning groove, and the bottom cover and the top cover are fixedly connected by bolts.

[0014] According to some embodiments of this utility model, a sealing strip is provided in the positioning groove, and the positioning strip presses against the sealing strip.

[0015] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the drying device further includes a control module, which is electrically connected to a plurality of the thick film heating tubes.

[0016] The drying apparatus according to the embodiments of this utility model has at least the following technical effects:

[0017] 1. Since the thick film heating element and the bracket are detachably connected, when one of the thick film heating elements is damaged, the damaged thick film heating element can be replaced, avoiding the need to replace the entire drying device and reducing costs.

[0018] 2. If it is necessary to repair the damaged thick film heating tube, the remaining thick film heating tubes can continue to work after the damaged tube is disassembled, thus avoiding the failure of the entire drying device and providing redundancy and fault tolerance. The drying device is highly maintainable, and the thick film heating tubes can be quickly and conveniently disassembled and installed, allowing for partial replacement instead of scrapping the entire machine.

[0019] Secondly, the present invention also provides a washing machine, including a drying device according to the first aspect embodiment of the present invention described above.

[0020] The washing machine according to the embodiments of this utility model has at least the following technical effects: The washing machine uses this drying device, and since the thick-film heating element is detachably connected to the bracket, when one of the thick-film heating elements is damaged, only the damaged element can be replaced, avoiding the need to replace the entire drying device and reducing costs. If repair is required for a damaged thick-film heating element, after disassembly, the remaining heating elements can continue to work, preventing the entire drying device from failing and providing redundancy and fault tolerance. The drying device is highly maintainable, and the thick-film heating element can be quickly and conveniently disassembled and assembled, allowing for partial replacement instead of scrapping the entire machine.

[0021] Additional aspects and advantages of this invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Attached Figure Description

[0022] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of this utility model will become apparent and readily understood from the description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a drying device according to some embodiments of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 2 This is an exploded view of a drying apparatus according to some embodiments of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the bracket according to some embodiments of the present invention.

[0026] Icon labels:

[0027] Housing 100; Air inlet 101; Air outlet 102; Bracket 110; Mounting slot 111; Thick film heating element 120; Heat exchange fin 121; Vibration damping frame 130; First frame 131; Second frame 132;

[0028] Bottom cover 201; top cover 202; positioning groove 210; positioning strip 220; first lug 231; second lug 232. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The embodiments of this utility model are described in detail below. Examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain this utility model, and should not be construed as limiting this utility model.

[0030] In the description of this utility model, it should be understood that the directional descriptions, such as up, down, front, back, left, right, etc., indicate the directional or positional relationship based on the directional or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this utility model and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this utility model.

[0031] In the description of this utility model, "several" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "greater than," "less than," and "exceeding" are understood to exclude the stated number, while "above," "below," and "within" are understood to include the stated number. If "first" or "second" is used in the description, it is only for the purpose of distinguishing technical features and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance, or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features, or implicitly indicating the order of the indicated technical features.

[0032] In the description of this utility model, unless otherwise explicitly defined, terms such as "setting," "installation," and "connection" should be interpreted broadly, and those skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meaning of the above terms in this utility model in conjunction with the specific content of the technical solution.

[0033] The embodiments of this utility model will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0034] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the drying device includes a housing 100, a support 110, and a plurality of thick-film heating elements 120. The housing 100 has an air inlet 101 and an air outlet 102. The air inlet 101 is located on the rear side of the housing 100, and the air outlet 102 is located on the front side of the housing 100. Gas flows from rear to front through the inner cavity of the housing 100. The support 110 is detachably connected to the housing 100 by bolts. The support 110 is located inside the housing 100 and has a plurality of mounting slots 111. Thick film heating tubes 120 are disposed inside the housing 100. The axis of the thick film heating tubes 120 is in the front-to-back direction. Multiple thick film heating tubes 120 are spaced apart in the left-to-right direction. Multiple thick film heating tubes 120 correspond one-to-one with multiple mounting grooves 111. The thick film heating tubes 120 are placed in the mounting grooves 111. Part of the outer peripheral wall of the thick film heating tube 120 abuts against the bottom of the mounting groove 111. The thick film heating tubes 120 and the bracket 110 are detachably connected by bolts.

[0035] Understandably, the heating unit of traditional drying equipment generally adopts an integrated structure of electric heating tube or PTC heater and metal bracket 110 welded and encapsulated. Its failure repair requires disassembling the drying cylinder shell and replacing the entire heating module. The operation process not only takes up to 2-3 hours, but also increases the cost of spare parts by more than 80% due to the replacement of normal parts.

[0036] In this embodiment, since the thick film heating tube 120 is detachably connected to the bracket 110, each thick film heating tube 120 is rigidly connected to the bracket 110 by an anti-loosening screw. At the same time, the mounting groove 111 is used to achieve precise alignment. The thick film heating tube 120 can be inserted into the housing 100 in the front-back direction and installed on the bracket 110 or detached from the housing 100 without damaging the sealing structure of the housing 100 itself or disassembling other functional units.

[0037] Preferably, the thick-film heating element 120 adopts a standard quick-connect waterproof external power supply interface, combined with a pressure contact conduction mechanism with integrated conductive contacts on the screw head. This enables automatic disconnection and reconnection of the circuit during disassembly and assembly, completely eliminating the risk of secondary damage caused by cutting wires in traditional solutions. When a single thick-film heating element 120 is damaged due to aging or overload, only the damaged element can be replaced, avoiding the need to replace the entire drying unit. Only spare heating elements of the same specification with a unit price of 5%-8% of the total machine price need to be purchased. With a quick replacement process within 10 minutes, the equipment can be restored to full functionality, saving 92% of maintenance costs and 95% of downtime compared to traditional solutions.

[0038] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the drying device further includes a control module, which is electrically connected to a plurality of thick film heating tubes 120.

[0039] Understandably, traditional drying devices, due to their single-unit heating layout, will directly cause the hot air system to fail completely if the heating wire melts or the PTC ceramic breaks, forcing the washing process to be interrupted.

[0040] In this embodiment, when one of the thick-film heating elements 120 is damaged and needs to be repaired, the remaining thick-film heating elements 120 can continue to operate after disassembly, preventing the entire drying device from failing and providing redundancy and fault tolerance. Furthermore, during the operation of the drying device, the control module can dynamically adjust the remaining thick-film heating elements 120 to exceed their rated power, maintaining overall heating power and ensuring accurate heating temperature.

[0041] Moreover, when the thick-film heating element 120 is replaced with a new model, only the thick-film heating element 120 needs to be replaced to achieve energy efficiency improvement, without having to replace the main structure such as the housing 100 and the bracket 110, thus saving costs. This drying device is highly maintainable, and the thick-film heating element 120 is quick and easy to disassemble and assemble, allowing for partial replacement instead of scrapping the entire machine.

[0042] According to some embodiments of this utility model, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3One side of the bracket 110 is recessed, while the corresponding side protrudes to form a mounting groove 111. The mounting groove 111 is arc-shaped, and its bottom fits against the outer peripheral wall of the thick-film heating element 120. It is understood that the arc-shaped surface design of the mounting groove 111 allows for a close fit against the outer peripheral wall of the thick-film heating element 120, providing a larger contact area and enhancing the mechanical support stability of the bracket 110 for the thick-film heating element 120, thus preventing displacement due to vibration or thermal expansion and contraction. Simultaneously, the increased contact area improves the heat transfer efficiency from the heating element to the bracket 110 and the housing 100, ensuring that the inner peripheral wall of the housing 100 also has heat, thereby heating the airflow. Furthermore, the arc-shaped design of the bracket 110 guides the airflow along the surface of the thick-film heating element 120, improving heat exchange efficiency.

[0043] Preferably, there are multiple supports 110, which are spaced apart in the front-to-back direction. The multiple supports 110 work together to support and connect the thick film heating tube 120, so that the thick film heating tube 120 can be stably supported and the stress is evenly distributed, thus preventing the thick film heating tube 120 from being easily damaged or broken after being violently impacted.

[0044] According to some embodiments of this utility model, refer to Figure 2 The thick-film heating tube 120 has multiple heat exchange fins 121 on its inner peripheral wall, which are distributed circumferentially along the thick-film heating tube 120. This circumferential distribution design of the heat exchange fins 121 significantly increases the effective heat transfer area by expanding the secondary heat transfer surface. The densely arranged circumferential heat exchange fins 121 prevent airflow from concentrating in localized areas, thus preventing "thermal short circuits" and achieving uniform airflow distribution. Furthermore, since the thick-film heating tube 120 itself has uniform heating characteristics, the addition of the heat exchange fins 121 further enhances this advantage. By distributing heat to the tips of the multiple heat exchange fins 121, the instantaneous heat load per unit area can be reduced, avoiding localized high-temperature points at the airflow contact surface, thereby reducing the risk of material thermal fatigue.

[0045] Preferably, the heat exchange plate 121 can be made of high thermal conductivity materials such as copper or aluminum alloy, or the heat transfer can be further enhanced by surface coating.

[0046] According to some embodiments of this utility model, refer to Figure 2 The heat exchange fins 121 extend along the front-to-back direction, and their axial projection along the thick-film heating tube 120 is arc-shaped. The arc shape of the heat exchange fins 121 actively alters the airflow pattern, causing periodic velocity changes in the fluid along the axial and lateral directions, prompting a premature transition from laminar to turbulent flow, thereby reducing the boundary layer thickness. The turbulent disturbances generated by the heat exchange fins 121 weaken the stagnant layer between the airflow and the tube wall. Furthermore, the physical barrier formed by the heat exchange fins 121 forces the airflow along a spiral or zigzag path, extending the residence time of the gas in the heating zone, thus improving the thermal energy absorption efficiency and directly increasing the heat exchange rate.

[0047] According to some embodiments of this utility model, the housing 100 includes a bottom cover 201 and a top cover 202, which are detachably connected. The bracket 110 and the bottom cover 201 are fixedly connected by bolts. It is understood that the bottom cover 201, top cover 202, and bracket 110 are modularly designed. This modular, separate structure simplifies the production process. The top cover 202 and bottom cover 201 can be independently processed and assembled, reducing reliance on large molds. Simultaneously, the bolt connection allows for fine-tuning of the bracket 110's position during assembly, ensuring precise alignment of the thick-film heating element 120 with the arc-shaped groove, reducing rework caused by accumulated tolerances. Furthermore, the rigid fixation of the bracket 110 to the bottom cover 201 enhances the overall structural rigidity, preventing displacement caused by operational vibrations. The detachable design allows maintenance personnel to quickly separate the top cover 202 from the bottom cover 201 without destructive disassembly, directly exposing the internal thick-film heating element 120 and bracket 110. This facilitates cleaning accumulated dust, replacing damaged components, or repairing circuits. The bolted bracket 110 also supports partial disassembly for maintenance, significantly reducing downtime. For example, replacing a single thick-film heating element 120 does not require removing all of them. Furthermore, this structure facilitates future upgrades and modifications. For instance, adding a new thick-film heating element 120 only requires adjusting the bolt hole positions of the bracket 110, eliminating the need to re-mold and manufacture the housing 100, further saving on modification costs. This design optimizes the total lifecycle cost by balancing structural strength and maintainability.

[0048] According to some embodiments of this utility model, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 The top cover 202 is provided with a plurality of first lugs 231 distributed circumferentially along the top cover 202. The bottom cover 201 is provided with a plurality of second lugs 232 distributed circumferentially along the bottom cover 201. The plurality of first lugs 231 and the plurality of second lugs 232 correspond one-to-one. The lower end face of the first lug 231 is in contact with the upper end face of the second lug 232. The first lugs 231 and the second lugs 232 are fixedly connected by bolts. The cooperation of multiple pairs of first lugs 231 and second lugs 232 can improve the connection stability between the top cover 202 and the bottom cover 201.

[0049] According to some embodiments of this utility model, refer to Figure 3The support 110 has shock-absorbing frames 130 at both ends. Each shock-absorbing frame 130 includes a first frame 131 and a second frame 132. The first frame 131 extends vertically, and the second frame 132 extends horizontally. The upper end of the first frame 131 is fixedly connected to the support 110, and one end of the second frame 132 is connected to the lower end of the first frame 131. The second frame 132 is then connected to the bottom of the housing 100 via a shock-absorbing spring. It is understood that the shock-absorbing frames 130 and the shock-absorbing springs can provide shock absorption. When the thick-film heating element 120 is installed on the support 110, the support 110 bends downwards under pressure. The second frame 132 and the lower side of the support 110 have a certain distance to facilitate the downward bending of the support 110. The first frame 131 is elastic and bends under force.

[0050] According to some embodiments of this utility model, the upper end face of the bottom cover 201 is provided with a positioning groove 210, and the lower end face of the top cover 202 is provided with a positioning strip 220. The positioning strip 220 is inserted into the positioning groove 210, and the bottom cover 201 and the top cover 202 are relatively fixed by bolts. A sealing strip is provided in the positioning groove 210, and the positioning strip 220 presses against the sealing strip. It can be understood that the positioning groove 210 on the upper end face of the bottom cover 201 and the positioning strip 220 on the lower end face of the top cover 202, through the interlocking cooperation, firstly achieves quick and accurate alignment during assembly, eliminates the risk of cover misalignment before bolt tightening, and ensures the spatial consistency of internal components such as the thick film heating tube 120 and the bracket 110. Secondly, the positioning strip 220 forms a physical limit after being inserted into the positioning groove 210, which can share the lateral shear force borne by the bolts, enhance the overall vibration resistance and structural rigidity of the shell 100, and prevent the connection from loosening due to airflow impact or mechanical vibration during the drying process. Meanwhile, when the sealing strip in the positioning groove 210 is pressed, it can form a continuous sealing interface at the joint surface of the top cover 202 and the bottom cover 201, effectively blocking the leakage of internal high-temperature airflow and the intrusion of external dust and moisture. This maintains the airtightness of the drying chamber to improve thermal efficiency and avoids electrical short circuits or component corrosion caused by media leakage. Ultimately, through the triple action of mechanical positioning, mechanical reinforcement and sealing protection, the long-term stable operation of the equipment is guaranteed.

[0051] In this specification, the reference to the term "some embodiments" means that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0052] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A drying apparatus, characterized by, The application relates to an oven drying device. The oven drying device comprises a shell (100) with an air inlet (101) and an air outlet (102); a support (110) which is detachably connected to the shell (100) and is located in the shell (100), wherein the support (110) is provided with a plurality of mounting grooves (111); and a plurality of thick film heating tubes (120) which are arranged in the shell (100) and are spaced apart along the left-right direction, wherein the thick film heating tubes (120) correspond to the mounting grooves (111) one by one, the thick film heating tubes (120) are arranged on the mounting grooves (111), and the thick film heating tubes (120) are detachably connected to the support (110). One side of the support (110) is recessed, and the other side is protruded to form the mounting grooves (111), wherein the mounting grooves (111) are arc-shaped and the groove bottoms are attached to the outer peripheral walls of the thick film heating tubes (120). The support (110) has a plurality of supports (110) which are spaced apart along the front-rear direction.

2. The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The two ends of the support (110) are provided with damping frames (130), wherein the damping frame (130) comprises a first frame (131) arranged vertically and a second frame (132) arranged horizontally, the upper end of the first frame (131) is fixedly connected to the support (110), the second frame (132) is connected to the lower end of the first frame (131), and the second frame (132) is connected to the bottom of the shell (100) through damping springs.

3. The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The shell (100) comprises a bottom cover (201) and a top cover (202), the bottom cover (201) and the top cover (202) are detachably connected, the support (110) and the bottom cover (201) are relatively fixed through bolt connection.

4. The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The top cover (202) is provided with a plurality of first lugs (231) which are distributed along the circumference of the top cover (202); the bottom cover (201) is provided with a plurality of second lugs (232) which are distributed along the circumference of the bottom cover (201), the first lugs (231) and the second lugs (232) correspond to each other one by one, the lower end surface of the first lug (231) is attached to the upper end surface of the second lug (232), and the first lug (231) and the second lug (232) are fixedly connected through bolts.

5. The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The upper end surface of the bottom cover (201) is provided with a positioning groove (210), the lower end surface of the top cover (202) is provided with a positioning strip (220), the positioning strip (220) is inserted into the positioning groove (210), and the bottom cover (201) and the top cover (202) are relatively fixed through bolt connection.

6. The drying apparatus according to claim 5, wherein The positioning groove (210) is provided with a sealing strip, and the positioning strip (220) compresses the sealing strip.

7. The drying apparatus according to claim 5, wherein The oven drying device further comprises a control module which is electrically connected to the thick film heating tubes (120).

8. The drying apparatus according to claim 7, wherein The oven drying device comprises the oven drying device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

9. The drying apparatus of claim 1, wherein, ​ 10. A laundry machine characterized by ​

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