Partitioned Injection Arm for Compact Dishwasher Drying
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional dishwashers face high energy consumption and inefficiency in heating water using electric heaters, and limited drying performance due to the lack of an air injection nozzle, leading to enlarged device sizes.
Innovation Solution
A dish washer design with a partitioned injection arm that separates washing water and air passages, utilizing a heat pump system to preheat air and inject hot air directly into the washing tank, reducing energy consumption and enhancing drying performance while maintaining a compact size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a washing water injection nozzle and an air injection nozzle are separately disposed inside the washing tank, then the drying performance can be improved, but the size of the dish washer is enlarged
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the washing water injection nozzle and air injection nozzle into a single integrated injection arm structure. The injection arm contains both a washing water passage and an air passage that are separately partitioned but housed within the same component, allowing both washing and drying functions to be performed without requiring separate nozzles dispersed throughout the washing tank.
Solution Approach 2:
The injection arm serves multiple functions: it acts as both a washing water injection device and an air injection device for drying. By integrating both functions into one component, the system achieves multi-functionality without increasing overall device size, as the same structural element performs both washing and drying operations.
2Loss of energy
If a heat pump system is used to heat washing water, then energy consumption is reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The heat pump system recovers waste heat from the drying process and reuses it to preheat the air injected during the drying stroke. This heat recovery mechanism reduces overall energy consumption by utilizing otherwise wasted thermal energy, thereby improving energy efficiency without requiring completely separate heating systems for washing and drying.
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 reduces energy consumption by using a heat pump for air heating, shortens drying time, improves drying performance through direct air injection, and simplifies the internal structure by eliminating the need for additional valves, while maintaining a compact design.
Implementation Method 1
a heat pump system that heats air flowing along the air passage
Implementation Method 2
a suction fan that introduces outside air into the duct unit and supplies the introduced air to the air passage
Data Source
AI summary
A dish washer includes a washing tank having an accommodation space for storing dishes therein; an injection arm disposed inside the washing tank, and provided with a plurality of nozzles to selectively inject washing water and air to the dishes according to a washing operation and a drying operation; a duct unit that defines a passage of the air to be supplied to the injection arm; a suction fan provided inside the duct unit to suction the air and supply the air to the injection arm; and an air heating element that heats the air to be supplied to the injection arm, wherein the injection arm includes a partition wall that partitions a washing water passage and an air passage therein.