Dryer Water Tank Intake Hole for Pressure Equalization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Laundry dryers with storage tanks for steam generation face issues of leakage between tank components due to vibration, leading to decreased internal air pressure and increased pump load, causing delays in steam supply.
Innovation Solution
A laundry dryer design with a fusion method for securing the tank cover to the tank body and incorporating intake holes on the storage tank to maintain equal internal and external air pressures, reducing leakage and pump load.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a storage tank with detachable upper and lower housings is used, then the tank can be easily recharged by users, but leakage occurs between housings due to vibration during drum rotation and transport
Solution Approach 1:
The storage tank is divided into an upper housing and a lower housing that can be detached from each other. This segmentation allows users to easily remove and recharge the upper housing separately, improving ease of operation while maintaining reliable sealing through proper coupling mechanisms.
2Device complexity
If separate intake holes are not provided in the housing, then the structure remains simple, but air pressure inside the water storage tank decreases when water is supplied through a pump
Solution Approach 1:
An intake hole is extracted as a separate functional element from the housing structure. This intake hole allows external air to enter the storage tank to replace the volume occupied by discharged water, maintaining internal air pressure without complicating the overall housing structure.
3Productivity
If water is forcibly supplied to the steam unit through a pump, then steam generation can be maintained, but the pump load increases due to decreasing internal air pressure
Solution Approach 1:
External air acts as an intermediary substance that enters the storage tank through the intake hole to replace discharged water volume. This maintains internal air pressure equilibrium, reducing the work load on the pump while ensuring continuous steam supply through consistent water flow.
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 solution significantly reduces the likelihood of water leakage and maintains smooth steam supply by equalizing internal and external air pressures, thereby reducing the load on the supply pump and ensuring efficient water delivery to the steam unit.
Implementation Method 1
maintaining an internal air pressure of the storage tank and an external air pressure equally when water is supplied to the steam unit through the supply pump
Data Source
AI summary
A laundry dryer includes: a cabinet defining an outer body of the laundry dryer, a drum that is rotatably disposed inside the cabinet and that is configured to receive hot air and steam, a steam unit that is disposed inside the cabinet and that is configured to generate the steam, a storage tank that is configured to detachably couple to an inside of the cabinet and that defines a storage space for receiving water to be supplied to the steam unit, and a tank housing that is disposed inside the cabinet and that is configured to accommodate the storage tank. An intake hole is defined at a front upper surface of the storage tank and provides, based on the storage tank being accommodated in the tank housing, an air flow path between the storage space and an external space of the storage tank.