Belt Mangle Inlet Inversion for Gravity-Fed Wrinkle-Free Ironing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laundry ironing systems face challenges in ensuring trouble-free and wrinkle-free feeding of items into the ironing gap, leading to potential disruptions and wrinkles during the ironing process.
Innovation Solution
The method involves feeding laundry items downwards into a lower inlet area, where they can enter the ironing gap following gravity, supported by the ironer belt, and arranging the inlet area below the outlet area to facilitate direct and smooth entry into the ironing gap, with the ironer belt being deflected to create a U-shaped course that allows for efficient feeding and removal of items.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If laundry items are fed horizontally into the ironing gap using conventional systems, then the feeding process requires additional assistance and mechanical intervention, but this leads to wrinkles and operational disruptions during ironing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional feeding approach by positioning the inlet area below the outlet area, allowing laundry items to enter the ironing gap from below rather than from the side. This inversion enables items to be fed automatically by gravity and belt movement without additional mechanical assistance, eliminating wrinkles and operational disruptions while maintaining ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The lower inlet area configuration allows laundry items to feed themselves into the ironing gap using gravity and the belt's upward movement, without requiring external feeding mechanisms or manual intervention. This self-service feeding process eliminates the complexity of additional assistance systems while ensuring reliable, wrinkle-free operation
2Device complexity
If the inlet area is positioned at the same level as the outlet area, then the mechanical structure is simplified, but laundry items cannot enter the ironing gap automatically and require assistance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a vertical dimension to the feeding process by positioning the inlet area below the outlet area. This dimensional change creates a height difference that enables automatic feeding through gravity and belt movement, achieving high automation without significantly increasing structural complexity since the basic mangle components remain the same
Solution Approach 2:
By inverting the conventional horizontal feeding arrangement to a vertical arrangement with inlet below outlet, the patent achieves automatic feeding capability. The inversion allows laundry items to naturally move into the ironing gap using gravity and belt assistance, eliminating the need for complex feeding mechanisms while maintaining structural simplicity
3Manufacturing precision
If laundry items are fed from above into a lower inlet area, then automatic entry into the ironing gap is achieved without wrinkles, but the belt must be deflected to create a U-shaped course
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a U-shaped belt deflection configuration where the belt is curved around a lower inlet area and returns upward to the outlet area. This curvature allows laundry items to be fed from above and automatically enter the ironing gap without wrinkles, achieving high ironing quality. The belt curvature is a simple modification that does not significantly increase device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces vertical dimensionality to the belt path by deflecting it downward to create a U-shaped course. This dimensional change allows the belt to receive laundry items from above and deliver them to the lower inlet area, ensuring wrinkle-free feeding and high ironing quality while maintaining relatively simple device structure through straightforward belt routing
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 approach ensures trouble-free and wrinkle-free feeding of laundry items into the belt ironer, reducing the risk of operational disruptions and maintaining the quality of ironed items by allowing them to enter the ironing gap without assistance, promoting efficient ironing and easy removal.
Implementation Method 1
the laundry items to be ironed are fed downwards into the ironing gap... the laundry items can thereby enter the ironing gap automatically, essentially by gravity
Data Source
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AI summary
In the case of sliver ironers (10), the inlet area (19) and outlet area (20) must be close together in order to achieve the largest possible angle of wrap around the ironer body (15) by the ironer sliver (17). This makes the entry of insufficient laundry items into the mangle gap (18) starting from the entry area (19) problematic. The invention provides for the items of laundry to be ironed to run downwards into the mangle gap (18). For this purpose, the inlet area (19) is preferably arranged below the outlet area (20). The invention ensures trouble-free and crease-free infeed of missing items of laundry into the belt mangle (10).