Laundry Drum Air Guide for Redirecting Drying Air Flow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laundry drying apparatuses suffer from inefficiency due to drying air not reaching the laundry effectively, as some air flows into gaps between the tub and drum, rather than being directed to the laundry.
Innovation Solution
A laundry apparatus with an air deflecting unit, featuring an inclined wall on the outer tub opening that deflects drying air downward into the inner tub, ensuring all air is used for drying, and includes a divider wall for even distribution and an escape hole to prevent packing wetting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If drying air is supplied downward from the air circulation duct to the outer tub opening, then the drying air can be delivered to the laundry area, but some drying air flows into the gap between the tub and drum instead of reaching the laundry
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an air deflecting unit as an intermediary component between the drying air supply passage and the laundry area. This deflecting unit redirects the downward-flowing drying air away from the gap between the tub and drum, ensuring that all supplied drying air reaches the laundry for effective drying, thus eliminating air loss while maintaining productivity
2Productivity
If the air deflecting unit is added to redirect drying air into the inner tub, then drying air is fully utilized for laundry drying, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The air deflecting unit is implemented as a thin, lightweight structure that can be easily integrated into the existing tub assembly. This minimizes the added complexity while achieving the desired air redirection function, maintaining simplicity in the overall device structure
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 improves laundry drying efficiency by ensuring all drying air is directed to the laundry, preventing air from flowing into gaps and ensuring even distribution, while also preventing packing wetting and potential discoloration.
Implementation Method 1
an air deflecting unit provided on an upper edge portion of the outer tub opening as being opposed to a lower end of the drying air supply passage for deflecting a flow of the drying air supplied to the outer tub opening to direct the drying air flow into the inner tub
Data Source
AI summary
A laundry apparatus according to the present invention ensures an improved laundry drying efficiency. In the laundry apparatus, an air guide (71) is provided on an upper edge portion of an outer tub opening (4a) as being opposed to an air inlet (6). Drying air flowing downward from the air inlet (6) to be supplied to the outer tub opening (4a) impinges on an inclined wall (72) of the air guide (71). The drying air impinging on the inclined wall (72) is deflected into a drum (5) through a drum opening (5a) (as indicated by a broken-line arrow). Thus, the drying air is prevented from further flowing downward in the outer tub opening (4a) into a gap (70) defined between the outer tub (4) and the drum (5), but supplied to laundry in the drum (5).