Dryer Pump Chamber Venting to Prevent Condensed Water Backflow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional clothes dryers face issues with backflow and scattering of condensed water due to negative air pressure in the pump chamber, leading to malfunction and increased manufacturing costs from complex assembly requirements for airtightness solutions.
Innovation Solution
A clothes dryer design featuring a second communication path that maintains airflow between the pump chamber and the circulation air flow path, reducing pressure differences and preventing backflow by ensuring the second communication path is positioned higher than the first, allowing air to flow into the pump chamber and increasing pressure in the condensed water storage chamber.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the pump chamber is configured to be communicated with the atmosphere through a removable covering portion, then the maintainability is improved, but the airtightness deteriorates causing backflow of condensed water
Solution Approach 1:
A communication path is introduced as an intermediary element between the pump chamber and the atmosphere. This communication path includes a pressure equalization hole that allows air to flow into the pump chamber, equalizing the pressure difference and preventing condensed water from flowing backward through the communication path between the condensed water storage chamber and pump chamber.
Solution Approach 2:
The pump chamber structure is segmented into multiple functional parts: the removable covering portion for maintenance access, the communication path for pressure equalization, and the condensed water storage chamber separated by a bottom wall. This segmentation allows the maintainability to be improved while preventing backflow through proper pressure management.
2Productivity
If the fan device operates at high air flow rate, then the drying efficiency is improved, but the negative air pressure increases causing condensed water to flow backward
Solution Approach 1:
The communication path acts as an intermediary pressure equalization mechanism between the pump chamber and the atmosphere. By allowing air to flow through the pressure equalization hole into the pump chamber, it mitigates the harmful effect of negative pressure generated by high-speed fan operation, thereby preventing condensed water backflow while maintaining high drying efficiency.
3Ease of operation
If the communication path is positioned lower, then the condensed water can flow easily to the pump chamber, but the air pressure difference causes the communication path to be blocked by condensed water
Solution Approach 1:
The communication path is positioned in a higher vertical dimension relative to the condensed water storage chamber. This dimensional positioning ensures that the communication path remains above the condensed water level, preventing blockage while still allowing condensed water to flow to the pump chamber through gravity through the bottom wall communication.
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 design effectively prevents backflow and scattering of condensed water, enabling higher air flow rates for the fan device while maintaining airtightness and reducing manufacturing complexity and costs.
Implementation Method 1
the air pressure in both the pump chamber and the condensed water storage chamber becomes negative. However, the air pressure in the pump chamber is higher than the air pressure in the condensed water storage chamber
Implementation Method 2
condensed water formed by dehumidification is attached to the surface of the cooling device in the form of droplets
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4a
AI summary
The clothes dryer of the present disclosure includes a circulation air flow path communicating with the drum, a condensed water storage chamber communicating with the circulation air flow path and a pump chamber communicating with the condensed water storage chamber. The communication path introduces air into at least one of the first circulation air flow path and the pump chamber to reduce the pressure of the pump chamber by introducing air into the pump chamber or to introduce air into the condensed water storage chamber through the first circulation air flow path. Accordingly, there is an effect of increasing the air volume of the fan device while preventing backflow and scattering of the condensed water caused by dehumidification in the clothes dryer.