Laundry equipment

Abstract

To detect breakage of a regulation part of a lock device.SOLUTION: A laundry equipment has an opening and closing part capable of blocking an input port to a drum, a lock device to lock the opening and closing part, and a control device. The lock device has an engagement part to engage the opening and closing part by being moved to an engagement position so that the opening and closing part maintains closed state, an engagement sensor to detect that the engagement part is located at the engagement position, a regulation part that is movably disposed in the lock device and regulates movement of the engagement part at the engagement position by being moved to the regulation position, a regulation drive part to drive the regulation part to move to the regulation position, and a regulation sensor to detect that the regulation part is located at the regulation position. The control device has an engagement determination part 302 to determine whether or not the engagement part is located at the engagement position, a regulation determination part 304 to determine whether or not the regulation part is located at the regulation position, and a state determination part 305 that determines that the lock device is abnormal when it is determined that the engagement part is not located at the engagement position and that the regulation part is located at the regulation position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to laundry equipment that performs at least washing or drying.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, laundry equipment has an opening provided at an inlet to a drum that houses objects to be washed or dried, which is configured as a door or lid and can be closed, and a locking device that locks the opening and closing part to prevent contact with the rotating drum.

[0003] Generally, the locking device includes a locking portion and a regulating portion. The regulating portion locks the opening and closing part in a state where the inlet is closed, and the locking portion that locks the opening and closing part is regulated to be immovable by the regulating portion, thereby locking the opening and closing part. Further, the locking device is provided with a sensor that detects that the regulating portion is regulating the locking portion, and the control device of the laundry equipment performs operation control for washing or drying only when the regulating portion is regulating the locking portion.

[0004] In such a locking device, for example, when an excessive force is applied to the opening and closing part in a locked state, a portion of the regulating portion that regulates the locking portion is damaged. Since the above-described sensor detects that the regulating portion is in a position where it regulates the locking portion, the control device starts operation control in a state where the opening and closing part is not locked.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Patent Document 4

Summary of the Invention

[0006] The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a technology that can detect damage to the restricting part of a locking device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The laundry machine of the embodiment comprises a drum capable of accommodating objects to be washed or dried, an opening / closing part capable of closing an opening to the drum, a locking device that locks the opening / closing part when it is closed and closing the opening, and a control device, wherein the locking device includes a locking part that is movable by the user of the laundry machine and moves to a locking position to lock the opening / closing part so that it maintains a closed state, a locking sensor that detects when the locking part is in the locking position, and a locking sensor that is movable in the locking device and moves to a restricted position to lock the opening / closing part The control device comprises a restricting unit that restricts the movement of a locking part, a restricting drive unit that drives the restricting unit to move to the restricted position, and a restricting sensor that detects whether the restricting unit is in the restricted position. The control device further comprises a locking determination unit that determines whether the locking part is in the locked position based on the detection result from the locking sensor, a restricting determination unit that determines whether the restricting unit is in the restricted position based on the detection result from the restricting sensor, and a state determination unit that determines that the locking device is abnormal if the locking determination unit determines that the locking part is not in the locked position and the restricting determination unit determines that the restricting unit is in the restricted position. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a front view showing the schematic configuration of the laundry equipment. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing the general configuration of laundry equipment. [Figure 3] This is a front view showing the configuration of the lever handle. [Figure 4] This is a side view showing the configuration of the lever handle. [Figure 5] This is a front view showing the configuration of the locking device. [Figure 6] This is a rear view showing the configuration of the locking device. [Figure 7] This is a front view showing the configuration of the locking mechanism. [Figure 8] This is a rear view showing the configuration of the locking mechanism. [Figure 9] This is a side view showing the configuration of the locking mechanism. [Figure 10] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system in a laundry machine. [Figure 11] This is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control device. [Figure 12] This is a flowchart showing the operation of the state determination process. [Figure 13] This is a rear view showing a properly functioning locking mechanism. [Figure 14] This is a rear view showing a locking device with a damaged regulatory section. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the side of the laundry machine with the opening will be referred to as the front.

[0010] (Laundry equipment configuration) The configuration of the laundry equipment according to this embodiment will now be described. Figures 1 and 2 are a front view and a perspective view, respectively, showing the schematic configuration of the laundry equipment.

[0011] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the laundry machine 1 according to this embodiment comprises a housing 10, a drum 12, an opening / closing door 13, a lever handle 14, an operation panel 15, and a locking device 2, and is a washer-dryer for washing and drying objects including clothes and sheets. Note that the laundry machine 1 may also be configured as a washing machine that washes objects only, or as a dryer that dries objects only.

[0012] The housing 10 is formed as a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape that defines an accommodation space inside as a whole, and an insertion port OP, which is a substantially circular opening that communicates the accommodation space with the outside, is formed on the front side surface of the housing 10. The drum 12 is formed as a substantially cylindrical shape with one end open, and is disposed inside the housing 10 so that an object can be put in and taken out of the drum 12 from the insertion port OP.

[0013] The opening / closing door 13 is formed as a substantially disc shape that can close the insertion port OP, and is connected to the vicinity of the right end portion (right side in FIG. 1) of the insertion port OP in the housing 10 via a hinge mechanism (not shown). The lever handle 14 is attached to the left end portion of the opening / closing door 13, and is used by the user of the laundry device 1 to open and close the opening / closing door 13. The locking device 2 is provided in the vicinity of the left edge portion (left side in FIG. 1) of the insertion port OP in the housing 10, and locks the opening / closing door 13 in cooperation with the lever handle 14, as will be described in detail later.

[0014] The operation panel 15 is a user interface for performing operations related to the operation of the laundry device 1, and is provided at the upper part of the front side surface of the housing 10. The operation panel 15 has a button group 151 and a display unit 152. The button group 151 is an input device for the user to select a plurality of set operation types of the laundry device 1, and is composed of a plurality of push buttons. The display unit 152 is an output device for presenting the state of the laundry device 1 to the user, and is configured as a display. Note that the button group 151 and the display unit 152 may be provided in a device connected to a plurality of laundry devices 1, such as a centralized settlement machine, for example.

[0015] (Configuration of the locking device) The configuration of the locking device will now be explained. Figures 3 and 4 are front and side views, respectively, showing the configuration of the lever handle. Figures 5 and 6 are front and rear views, respectively, showing the configuration of the locking device. Figures 7, 8, and 9 are front, rear, and side views, respectively, showing the configuration of the locking part. Note that Figure 4 shows the lever handle viewed from the right side (right side in Figure 3), and Figure 8 shows the lever handle viewed from the left side (left side in Figure 7).

[0016] First, before describing the locking device 2, the configuration of the lever handle 14 will be explained. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the lever handle 14 has a shaft portion 141, a gripping portion 142, and a locking portion 143. The shaft portion 141 is formed in a long, substantially cylindrical shape extending in one direction. The gripping portion 142 is provided at one end of the shaft portion 141 and extends in a direction perpendicular to the radial direction of the shaft portion 141, that is, the direction in which the shaft portion 141 extends. The locking portion 143 is provided at the other end of the shaft portion 141 and extends in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the shaft portion 141 extends and the direction in which the gripping portion 142 extends.

[0017] The shaft portion 141 is inserted into the opening / closing door 13 such that, when the opening / closing door 13 is closed to the input opening OP, its extending direction faces the front-rear direction, the gripping portion 142 is positioned on the front side, and the locking portion 143 is positioned on the rear side. Furthermore, the shaft portion 141 is rotatable relative to the opening / closing door 13 within an angular range from a rotation position where the extending direction of the gripping portion 142 faces to the right (right side in Figure 1) to a rotation position where the extending direction of the gripping portion 142 faces downward.

[0018] As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the locking device 2 comprises a housing 20, a locking part 21, an interlocking part 22, a locking sensor 23, a restricting part 24, a transmission part 25, a restricting drive part 26, and a restricting sensor 27. The housing 20 is formed in a roughly box shape with an open rear and is attached to the front of the housing 10 of the laundry machine 1 to define the housing space. The housing space of the housing 20 accommodates the locking part 21, the interlocking part 22, the locking sensor 23, the restricting part 24, the transmission part 25, the restricting drive part 26, and the restricting sensor 27.

[0019] An insertion hole 201, which is a through hole into which the shaft portion 141 and the locking portion 143 can be inserted, is formed on the front surface of the housing 20. In addition, a locking guide portion 202 for guiding the locking portion 21, an interlocking guide portion 203 for guiding the interlocking portion 22, a restricting guide portion 204 for guiding the restricting portion 24, and a transmission support portion 205 for supporting the transmission portion 25 are formed in the housing space of the housing 20.

[0020] As shown in Figures 7 to 9, the locking portion 21 is a member formed in a substantially fan shape with a central angle of 90° or more and less than 180° when viewed from the front. The locking portion 21 has a locking hole 211, a restricting hole 212, and a protruding portion 213. The locking hole 211 is a hole formed on the front surface of the locking portion 21 in substantially the same shape as the insertion hole 201, and is formed to be recessed to the rear from the center of the fan shape of the locking portion 21 to near the radially outward end. The restricting hole 212 is a hole formed on the circumferential surface of the locking portion 21 near the radially outward end of the locking hole 211, into which the restricting portion 24 can be inserted, and communicates with the locking hole 211 inside the locking portion 21. The protruding portion 213 is provided on the front surface of the locking portion 21 and is formed to protrude forward.

[0021] The locking portion 21 is guided by the locking guide portion 202 so as to be rotatable around the center point of the fan shape. The locking guide portion 202 also restricts the rotation angle of the locking portion 21 to an angular range from the unlocked position, where the restricting hole 212 faces to the left (left side in Figure 5), to the locked position, where the restricting hole 212 faces downward. Figures 5 and 6 show the locking portion 21 in the locked position.

[0022] The locking portion 143 of the lever handle 14 is inserted into the locking hole 211 when the locking portion 21 is positioned in an unlocked position and the insertion hole 201 of the housing 20 and the locking hole 211 of the locking portion 21 overlap. When the lever handle 14 is rotated clockwise in a front view while inserted into the locking hole 211, the locking portion 21 is rotated clockwise by the locking portion 143. At this time, the locking portion 143 is locked by the housing 20 so that it cannot move forward. In this way, the opening and closing door 13 is maintained in a closed state via the lever handle 14.

[0023] The interlocking unit 22 is a member formed in a substantially annular shape as a whole, and is guided by the interlocking guide unit 203 to move linearly for a predetermined distance. The locking sensor 23 is configured as a push-button switch and detects, via the interlocking unit 22, that the locking unit 21 is in the locked position. The interlocking unit 22 is provided on the housing 20 such that the protrusion 213 of the locking unit 21 engages with its inner circumferential surface, thereby moving linearly to press the button on the locking sensor 23 when the locking unit 21 is in the locked position.

[0024] The restricting portion 24 is, as a whole, a roughly rod-shaped elongated member extending in one direction, and is provided on the left side of the locking portion 21 (right side in Figure 6) with its longitudinal direction facing left to right, and is guided to move left to right by the restricting guide portion 204. The restricting portion 24 has an engaged portion 241 and two protruding portions 242. The engaged portion 241 is formed so that one end of the transmission portion 25, which will be described in detail later, can engage with it. The two protruding portions 242 are both provided on the left side of the engaged portion 241 (right side in Figure 6) and are formed to protrude upward and downward, respectively.

[0025] The restricting drive unit 26 is configured as a linear solenoid, and a rod-shaped movable core is provided in the housing 20 so as to face left and right. An engaged portion 261 is attached to the left end (right side in Figure 6) of the movable core so as to be able to engage with the other end of the transmission unit 25. The transmission unit 25 is a long, roughly plate-shaped member, and is provided in the housing 20 so as to face up and down. The upper end of the transmission unit 25 engages with the engaged portion 241 of the restricting unit 24, and the lower end engages with the engaged portion 261 of the restricting drive unit 26. The transmission support portion 205 is provided so as to be positioned between the engaged portions 241 and 261 in the vertical direction, and supports the transmission unit 25 by sandwiching it from the left and right directions.

[0026] When the restricting drive unit 26 is activated to move the engaged portion 261 to the left (right side in Figure 6), the lower end of the transmission portion 25 moves to the left, and the upper end moves to the right, pivoting on the transmission support portion 205. As a result, the restricting drive unit 26 drives the restricting portion 24 to move to the right. When the restricting drive unit 26 is activated while the locking portion 21 is in the locked position, the right end of the restricting portion 24 is inserted into the restricting hole 212 of the locking portion 21. As a result, the rotation of the locking portion 21 is restricted by the restricting portion 24, and the opening and closing door 13 is locked by the locking device 2.

[0027] (Control system configuration) This section describes the configuration of the control system for laundry equipment. Figure 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system in laundry equipment.

[0028] As shown in Figure 10, the laundry machine 1 further includes a control device 30, a temperature sensor 41, a water level sensor 42, a drive motor 51, a water supply valve 52, a drain valve 53, a fan 54, and a heating unit 55. The control device 30 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 31, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 32, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 33, and the various functions described later are realized by the cooperation of the CPU 31, ROM 32, and RAM 33. The control device 30 acquires detection results from the temperature sensor 41, water level sensor 42, locking sensor 23, and regulating sensor 27, and controls the drive motor 51, water supply valve 52, drain valve 53, fan 54, and heating unit 55. In addition, the control device 30 acquires instructions related to the operation of the laundry machine 1 through operation of the operation panel 15, and presents information related to the operation of the laundry machine 1 to the user.

[0029] The temperature sensor 41 detects the temperature inside the laundry machine 1. The water level sensor 42 detects the water level inside the drum 12. The drive motor 51 rotates the drum 12. The water supply valve 52 opens and closes the water supply channel for supplying water to the drum 12. The drain valve 53 opens and closes the drain channel for draining water from the drum 12. The fan 54 draws air into the drum 12. The heating unit 55 heats the air that is drawn into the drum 12 by the fan 54.

[0030] The control device 30 performs washing operation control by opening the water supply valve 52 so that the water level detected by the water level sensor 42 reaches the set water level, rotating the drum 12 supplied with water using the drive motor 51 to wash the object, and opening the drain valve 53 so that the dirty water after washing is discharged from the drum 12. The control device 30 also performs drying operation control by controlling the fan 54 and heating unit 55 so that the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 41 reaches the set temperature, and rotating the drum 12 with the drive motor 51. In the following description, washing operation control and drying operation control will not be distinguished and will be collectively referred to as operation control. Furthermore, as will be described in detail later, during operation control, the control device 30 activates the regulating drive unit 26 based on the detection result from the locking sensor 23 to lock the opening and closing door 13.

[0031] (Functional Configuration) The functional configuration of the control device will now be explained. Figure 11 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control device.

[0032] As shown in Figure 11, the control device 30 includes, functionally, an instruction acquisition unit 301, a locking determination unit 302, a restriction control unit 303, a restriction determination unit 304, a state determination unit 305, an operation control unit 306, and a notification unit 307. The instruction acquisition unit 301 acquires instructions related to the operation control of the laundry machine 1 via the operation panel 15. The locking determination unit 302 determines whether the locking device 2 is in a locked state. The restriction control unit 303 activates the restriction drive unit 26. The restriction determination unit 304 determines whether the locking device 2 is in a restricted state. The state determination unit 305 determines whether the locking device 2 is normal based on the determination results from the locking determination unit 302 and the restriction determination unit 304. The operation control unit 306 performs operation control of the laundry machine 1 based on the instructions acquired by the instruction acquisition unit 301. The notification unit 307 provides notification regarding the state of the locking device 2 via the operation panel 15.

[0033] (State determination process) This section describes the state determination process for determining the state of the locking device. Figure 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the state determination process. Figures 13 and 14 are rear views showing a normal locking device and a locking device with a damaged restrictor, respectively. Note that in Figure 12, the laundry machine is assumed to be in an operational control state.

[0034] As shown in Figure 12, first, the state determination unit 305 determines whether or not the operation control of the laundry machine 1 by the operation control unit 306 has been stopped (S101). Here, stopping the operation control includes temporary suspension of operation control by user operation and termination of operation control.

[0035] If the operation control is stopped (S101, YES), the locking determination unit 302 determines whether the locking device 2 is in a locked state, that is, whether the locking part 21 is in the locked position (S102).

[0036] If the locking device 2 is not in the locked state (S102, NO), the state determination unit 305 activates the restriction drive unit 26 to the restriction control unit 303 (S103), and the restriction determination unit 304 determines whether the locking device 2 is in the restricted state, that is, whether the restriction unit 24 is in the restricted position (S104). Depending on the rotation speed of the lever handle 14 by the user and the positional relationship between the locking sensor 23 and the restriction hole 212, there may be a time delay from the state in which the locking unit 21 is not in the locked position, that is, the state in which the locking sensor 23 is not pressed, until the state in which the restriction unit 24 can be inserted into the restriction hole 212. Therefore, the determination in step S104 may be made after a predetermined time has elapsed since the determination by the locking determination unit 302, for example, after a few seconds have elapsed.

[0037] If the locking device 2 is in a restricted state (S104, YES), more specifically, if the movement of the restricting part 24 is obstructed by the locking part 21, as shown in Figure 13, the state determination unit 305 determines that the locking device 2 is normal (S105).

[0038] On the other hand, if the locking device 2 is not in a restricted state (S104, NO), more specifically, as shown in Figure 14, if the movement of the restricting part 24 is not obstructed by the locking part 21, the state determination unit 305 determines that the locking device 2 is abnormal and that the restricting part 24 is damaged (S106), and the notification unit 307 notifies the user of the abnormality of the locking device 2 via the operation panel 15 (S107). Here, the notification unit 307 displays at least that an abnormality has occurred on the display unit 152 of the operation panel 15, and also displays the type of abnormality. The notification of the abnormality of the locking device 2 may also be made by other notification means, including audio output from a speaker, lighting / flashing of a lamp, etc. Furthermore, if the laundry machine 1 is connected to a network, the notification unit 307 may also notify the administrator of the laundry machine 1 via the network. Furthermore, the state in which the movement of the restricting part 24 is not obstructed by the locking part 21 may be due to damage to the locking part 21, a false detection by the locking sensor 23, or a false detection by the restricting sensor 27. Therefore, in step S106, the state determination unit 305 may determine that there is an abnormality in the locking device 2, such as damage to the locking part 21, a false detection or malfunction of the locking sensor 23, or a false detection or malfunction of the restricting sensor 27.

[0039] Furthermore, if the locking device 2 is in a locked state in step S102 (S102, YES), the locking determination unit 302 determines again whether or not the locking device 2 is in a locked state (S102).

[0040] Furthermore, if the operation control is not stopped in step S101 (S101, NO), the state determination unit 305 determines again whether the operation control of the laundry machine 1 by the operation control unit 306 has been stopped (S101).

[0041] As described above, with the control device 30 in this embodiment, when the operation control is stopped and the user operates the lever handle 14 to open the opening / closing door 13, the restricting drive unit 26 is activated, so that if the locking device 2 is functioning correctly, the restricting unit 24 will not move. As a result, the control device 30 can detect damage to the restricting unit 24 when the locking unit 21 is not in the locked position and the restricting unit 24 is in the restricted position.

[0042] The embodiments of the present invention are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be carried out in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0043] 1. Laundry equipment 2. Locking device 21 Locking part 23 Locking Sensor 24 Regulatory Department 27 Regulatory Sensors 30 Control device 302 Locking determination section 304 Regulatory Judgment Department 305 State determination unit

Claims

1. A laundry machine comprising: a drum capable of accommodating objects; an opening / closing unit capable of opening and closing an opening to the drum; a locking device that locks the opening / closing unit in a closed state in which the opening / closing unit blocks the opening; and a control device that determines an abnormality in the locking device, The locking device is a locking portion that locks the opening / closing portion so that the opening / closing portion is maintained in a closed state when a user of the laundry appliance performs a closing operation to a locking position; a locking sensor that detects that the locking portion is in the locking position; a restricting portion that restricts movement of the locking portion when the locking portion is in the locking position; a restriction drive portion that moves the restriction portion to a restriction position where the movement of the locking portion is restricted; a restriction sensor that detects that the restriction portion is in the restriction position; Equipped with The control device includes: A laundry machine characterized in that when the locking portion is not in the locking position based on the detection result by the locking sensor and the regulating portion is in the regulating position based on the detection result by the regulating sensor, the locking device is determined to be abnormal.

2. The control device includes: a lock determination unit that determines whether the lock portion is in the lock position; a restriction determination unit that determines whether the restriction unit is in the restriction position; a state determination unit that determines that the locking device is abnormal when the lock determination unit determines that the locking portion is not at the locking position and the restriction determination unit determines that the restriction portion is at the restriction position; and 2. The laundry machine according to claim 1, further comprising:

3. The laundry equipment of claim 2, characterized in that the state determination unit determines that the locking device is abnormal when the locking determination unit determines that the locking portion is not in the locking position after operation of the laundry equipment is stopped, and when the regulating drive unit is activated, the regulating determination unit determines that the regulating portion is in the regulating position.

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