Dryer Air-Filtering Cartridge With Side Openings to Stop Lint Bypass
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Solution Overview
Problem
In rotary-drum household laundry dryers, fluff and lint particles often bypass the air-filtering cartridge, leading to accumulation in the air recirculating conduit, which reduces drying air flow and thermal heat exchange, causing performance issues.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates an air-filtering cartridge with lateral walls featuring drying air inlet pass-through openings that prevent fluff and lint particles from bypassing the filter, ensuring they are trapped within the cartridge, and protruding ribs for secure fitting to minimize gaps and improve sealing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional air-filtering cartridge is used without pass-through openings, then the cartridge structure is simple and manufacturing is easier, but fluff and lint particles bypass the filter and accumulate in the air recirculating conduit
Solution Approach 1:
The cartridge is divided into multiple functional zones: an outer shell, inner partition walls, and multiple pass-through openings. This segmentation allows the filter to simultaneously achieve particle trapping and airflow guidance, preventing bypass while maintaining structural clarity
Solution Approach 2:
Pass-through openings act as intermediary channels that guide airflow through the cartridge interior. These openings serve as mediators between the external airflow and the filtering surfaces, ensuring all air passes through the filter media rather than bypassing it
2Ease of operation
If the air-filtering cartridge has gaps for insertion/removal, then ease of operation is improved, but fluff and lint particles can deposit in the gaps and enter the air conduit
Solution Approach 1:
The protruding ribs create a preliminary sealing action between the cartridge and seat before the cartridge is fully inserted. This pre-sealing prevents particles from entering the gap during insertion/removal operations, while still allowing easy cartridge access
Solution Approach 2:
The protruding ribs perform a preliminary engagement function, guiding the cartridge into proper alignment with the seat and creating initial contact points that seal the gap before complete insertion, preventing particle contamination during the operation
3Duration of action of stationary object
If fluff and lint particles accumulate in the air recirculating conduit, then the device continues to operate, but drying air flow and thermal heat exchange are reduced, causing performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The filter cartridge with pass-through openings performs preliminary particle removal at the source, preventing fluff and lint from entering the air recirculating conduit in the first place. This proactive filtering maintains airflow and heat exchange efficiency throughout the dryer's operational life
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 reduces the accumulation of fluff and lint particles in the air recirculating conduit, maintaining air flow and heat exchange efficiency, thereby enhancing the dryer's performance and extending the lifespan of components.
Implementation Method 1
a drying air-filtering cartridge (5) which is fitted in a removable manner into a seat (6) formed in an air outlet section (36) through which drying air is exhausted from the chamber (3)
Implementation Method 2
an electrically-powered centrifugal fan which is located along the air recirculating conduit and is structured to produce an airflow which flows in closed loop through the air recirculating conduit and the rotatable drum
Implementation Method 3
an air-cooling device which is located along the air recirculating conduit, and is structured to cool the most air arriving from the rotatable drum, so as to cause the condensation of the surplus moisture inside the airflow
Implementation Method 4
an air-heating device which is located along the air recirculating conduit, downstream of the air-cooling device, and which is structured for heating the dehumidified airflow arriving from the air-cooling device and directed back to the rotatable drum
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3
AI summary
The present invention relates to a laundry dryer. A laundry dryer (1) according to the invention comprises a laundry treating chamber (3), a drying air circulating conduit (12) extending through the laundry treating chamber having a drying air outlet section (36) for exhausting drying air from the chamber (3), wherein the laundry dryer further comprises a drying air-filtering cartridge (5,52,53,54,55) which is fitted in a removable manner into a seat (6) formed in the air outlet section, the drying air-filtering cartridge comprising: two shells (23a,23b) associated one another, a first air permeable surface (21) extending from one shell towards the other shell for allowing drying air entering the air-filtering cartridge, and a second air permeable surface (22) for allowing exhausting drying air from the air-filtering cartridge, the first and the second surfaces being connected through lateral side walls (24a-d). A laundry dryer according to the invention is characterized in that at least one drying air inlet pass-through opening (9a-d,93a,b,94e,f) is formed in a portion of said lateral walls resting within the seat when the air-filtering cartridge is fitted thereinto.