Ball Balancer Gap and Oil Viscosity for Washer Vibration Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Washing machines experience vibration and noise issues during the drying process due to the unbalanced distribution of laundry, which conventional ball balancers with viscous oil struggle to address effectively, especially with temperature sensitivity and manufacturing errors affecting gap and viscosity ratios.
Innovation Solution
The washing machine incorporates ball balancers with adjustable gap and viscosity ratios between the racer and balls, using viscous oil with viscosities ranging from 100 to 1000 cSt and gaps between 0.5 to 3 mm to maintain dynamic balance and minimize vibration and noise.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the gap between the inner wall of the racer and the steel balls is small, then the ball balancer attains correct position more accurately, but the deviation in vibration increases due to temperature sensitivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by adjusting the viscosity of the viscous oil and the gap size between the racer inner wall and steel balls based on operating conditions. Specifically, the viscosity is optimized to be 100-380 cSt and the gap is set to 1.0-1.0 mm to achieve optimal balance between position accuracy and vibration stability across different temperatures.
2Speed
If the gap between the inner wall of the racer and the steel balls is large, then the ball balancer rapidly attains correct position and vibration is decreased, but noise increases when viscosity is low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves this contradiction by optimizing the viscosity parameter to 100-380 cSt and gap to 1.0-1.0 mm, which allows the ball balancer to rapidly attain correct position while suppressing noise generation. This parameter optimization ensures that the viscous oil provides sufficient damping to reduce noise even with the larger gap that enables faster balancing response.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If the gap is expanded to control vibration and noise, then manufacturing error of the racer becomes difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent addresses this by setting the gap to a specific range of 1.0-1.0 mm, which is large enough to control vibration and noise but small enough to maintain manufacturing precision. This optimized gap size, combined with the viscous oil viscosity of 100-380 cSt, provides sufficient tolerance for manufacturing errors while still achieving effective vibration and noise control.
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
The optimized ball balancers effectively maintain dynamic balance and reduce vibration and noise levels within acceptable limits, improving the operational stability of the washing machine across varying conditions.
Implementation Method 1
viscous oil fills the inside of the racer
Implementation Method 2
Balls made of steel and freely movably are disposed in the racer
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a washing machine having ball balancers, which adjust a relation between a gap, between the inner wall of a racer of each of the ball balancers and balls, and viscous oil, so as to reduce the vibration and noise of the washing machine. Each of the ball balancers of the washing machine includes balls and viscous oil accommodated in a racer, and the viscosity of the viscous oil is varied in proportion to a gap between the racer and the balls. When the viscosity of the viscous oil is 1˜100 cSt, the gap is set to 0.5˜1.0 mm, when the viscosity of the viscous oil is 100˜380 cSt, the gap is set to 1.0˜2.0 mm, and when the viscosity of the viscous oil is 380˜1,000 cSt, the gap is set to 2.0˜3.0 mm. Thereby, the relation between the gap and the viscous oil is optimized, and the ball balancers effectively exhibit a balancing function and thus minimize the vibration and noise of the washing machine.