Air Intake Branching for Laundry Dispenser Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laundry care appliances face challenges in maintaining the effectiveness of laundry care substances like fabric softeners and bleach due to high temperatures, which can exceed 40°C, leading to reduced performance and prolonged exposure in dosing systems.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating an air intake device that draws in external air, using a branching element to divert this air directly to the dosing system, and employing a three-way valve to control air distribution, ensuring effective cooling without relying on a separate cooling element, and utilizing a temperature detection system to regulate air intake based on temperature thresholds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a separate cooling element is installed in the laundry care device, then the laundry care substance can be cooled effectively, but the device complexity and installation space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The air intake device originally designed for the condensation device is made to serve dual purposes: supplying air to the condensation device and cooling the laundry care substance in the dispensing bowl. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for a separate cooling element, reducing device complexity while maintaining effective cooling
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling function for the laundry care substance is merged with the existing air intake system for the condensation device. By combining these functions into a single air supply pathway with a branching element, the patent avoids adding separate cooling components, thereby simplifying the overall device structure
2Temperature
If air is drawn from the interior of the laundry care appliance, then the cooling system is simpler, but the cooling effectiveness is reduced due to warmed interior air
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by drawing cool air from the exterior environment rather than using the uniformly warmed interior air. This localized approach to air intake ensures that the dispensing bowl receives cooler air for effective cooling, while the interior air can be used for other purposes or simply excluded from the cooling pathway
3Temperature
If the laundry care substance is heated to high temperatures, then the heating function of the appliance is effective, but the effectiveness of the laundry care substance is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by providing a cooling pathway for the laundry care substance before it can be overheated by the heating process. The air intake device supplies cool air to the dispensing bowl, preventing the laundry care substance from reaching temperatures that would reduce its effectiveness, thus counteracting the potential harmful thermal effect in advance
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution effectively cools the laundry care substances, preventing overheating and maintaining their performance by utilizing existing condensation device air, thus extending their effectiveness and reducing the need for additional cooling components.
Implementation Method 1
an air intake device for sucking in air from an external area of the laundry care appliance, and with an air line for feeding the sucked-in air to the condensation device, with a branch element being arranged in the air line, and with the branch element being connected to the shell housing by a feed line in order to feed the sucked-in air into the dosing system
Implementation Method 2
a condensation device that can be used to remove moisture from the air
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to a laundry-care appliance (100) for the care of laundry, comprising a condensation device (111), a metering system (105) for metering a laundry-care substance, a dispenser tray (103) for receiving the metering system (105), a tray housing (101) for receiving said dispenser tray (103), an air intake device (107) for the intake of air from a region outside of said laundry-care appliance (100), and an air conduit (109) for feeding the intake air to said condensation device (111). A branch element (113) is arranged in the air conduit (109). The branch element (113) is connected, by means of a supply line (115), to the tray housing (101) in order to supply the intake air to the metering system (105) in the dispenser tray (103) of said tray housing (101).