Dosing device, household appliance, substance, method for producing a substance and cartridge
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dishwasher detergent dosing systems face challenges in accurately dispensing the right amount of cleaning agent, as powders are cumbersome to handle and require moisture protection, while tabs provide ease but have fixed doses, leading to potential under or over-dosing based on soil levels.
Innovation Solution
A dosing device that uses light to transform a spatially stable additive into a unstable state, allowing precise metering of cleaning agents into the dishwasher, where the additive is initially embedded in a fixing material that becomes hydrolyzable with water, enabling controlled release based on light exposure parameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If powder cleaning agent is used, then dosing flexibility is improved, but handling complexity and moisture protection requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines powder cleaning agent with a water-soluble encapsulating material to form a composite tablet structure. This allows the powder to be handled easily in tablet form while maintaining dosing flexibility, as the tablet dissolves to release the exact amount of powder needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state of the cleaning agent from loose powder to solid tablet form through encapsulation. This parameter change improves handling ease while the water-soluble nature of the encapsulating material ensures the powder is released in controlled amounts during the wash cycle.
2Ease of operation
If fixed-dose tabs are used, then ease of operation is improved, but dosing precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the tablet into multiple functional layers: an outer water-soluble encapsulating layer and an inner powder-containing layer. This segmentation allows the tablet to maintain easy handling properties while enabling precise dosing control through the dissolution of the encapsulating layer.
Solution Approach 2:
The water-soluble encapsulating material acts as an intermediary between the user and the powder cleaning agent. It provides easy handling in tablet form while controlling the release of the active cleaning powder, thus bridging the gap between ease of use and dosing precision.
3Reliability
If complete dispensing of cleaning agent is used, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but detergent waste increases for lightly soiled items
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables partial dosing by designing tablets that can be broken or dissolved in controlled amounts. The water-soluble encapsulating material allows the user to dispense only the necessary portion of the cleaning agent for lightly soiled items, avoiding the waste associated with complete dispensing of fixed-dose tabs.
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 allows for flexible and accurate dosing of cleaning agents, adapting to varying soil levels and cycle requirements, ensuring optimal cleaning performance without excess detergent usage.
Implementation Method 1
The light source (10) is set up to decompose a fixing material (9) in which an additive (8) is embedded or which encases the additive (8), with the aid of the light generated, in order to release a subset (3) of the additive (8) for dosing into the working medium (5)
Implementation Method 2
The spatial instability of the subset can also amount to the fact that the subset treated with the light becomes susceptible to hydrolysis with water as a result of this treatment
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4A~4D
AI summary
The invention relates to a dosing device (2) for a household appliance (1), in particular a dishwasher, the dosing device (2) being set up to dispense a partial quantity (3) of an additive (8) into a working medium (5 ) of the household appliance (1) to dose.