Movable Drum Lifters for Gentle Washing and Balanced Spinning
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing washing machines face challenges in achieving efficient washing and gentleness on clothes due to the compromise between lifter size, which affects mechanical stress, tangling, and laundry distribution, leading to unbalanced drum issues during the spinning phase.
Innovation Solution
A lifter system comprising a fixed and movable part with springs that adjust height during the wash process, allowing for increased gentleness and improved laundry distribution by adapting shape to load size and reducing mechanical stress.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bigger lifters are used, then wetting process and chemical interaction between detergent and textiles is improved, but mechanical stresses on fibers increase, causing more tangling and wrinkling
Solution Approach 1:
The lifter structure incorporates movable elements that can change position during drum rotation, transitioning from extended to retracted positions. This dynamic adjustment allows the lifter to provide strong lifting action during washing while reducing mechanical stress during spinning, resolving the contradiction between washing effectiveness and clothes protection
Solution Approach 2:
The lifter's effective height and position parameters are changed during operation through spring mechanisms and gravity-dependent movement. This allows optimization of lifter geometry for different operational phases (washing vs. spinning), achieving both effective wetting and reduced mechanical stress
2Reliability
If bigger lifters are used, then washing performance is improved, but laundry distribution becomes unbalanced during spinning phase
Solution Approach 1:
The lifters dynamically adjust their position based on drum rotation phase and load conditions. During spinning, the movable portions retract to minimize protrusion into the laundry mass, maintaining balance while still providing washing benefits from the extended phase
3Reliability
If lifters are made movable and adjustable, then gentleness and wash performance are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The lifter system uses the drum's own rotation, gravity, and spring forces to automatically adjust lifter positions without requiring external actuators or complex control systems. This self-regulating mechanism achieves adaptive performance while minimizing added complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Spring elements serve as intermediaries between the fixed lifter base and movable portions, providing simple mechanical coupling that enables movement while maintaining structural integrity. This intermediary mechanism achieves complexity reduction through passive elastic elements
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 adjustable lifter system enhances wash performance, reduces tangling and wrinkling, improves laundry distribution, and increases drum capacity, resulting in a more balanced and efficient washing and spinning cycle.
Implementation Method 1
Between the movable part and the fixed part one or several springs are interposed which urge the movable part in extended position
Implementation Method 2
one or several springs are interposed which urge the movable part in extended position
Implementation Method 3
the spring force and mass of the movable part is predetermined so that the movable part is moving in and out during different steps of the wash process
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A washing or drying machine comprises a rotating drum (10) and at least a lifter (12) arranged on an inner peripheral surface of the drum (10). The lifter (12) is movable and it comprises a base portion (12a) fixed to the drum (10) and a movable portion (12b) hinged to said base portion (12a).