Washing Drum Rinse Additive Saturation for Uniform Laundry Treatment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laundry washing machine programs result in inhomogeneous distribution of rinse additives, such as fabric softeners, leading to uneven treatment of laundry, which can prevent desired properties like softness from being achieved uniformly.
Innovation Solution
The method involves saturating the laundry with water before introducing the rinse additive, allowing it to react more progressively and ensuring all parts of the laundry interact with the additive, combined with circulation steps to enhance dissolution and distribution within the washing machine.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If rinse additive is introduced directly into the drum and onto the fabrics, then the treatment process is simple and quick, but the distribution of additive becomes inhomogeneous
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by saturating the laundry with water before introducing the rinse additive. This preparatory step ensures that the laundry is in a saturated state, which allows for more progressive reaction and better distribution of the additive throughout all parts of the laundry, resolving the contradiction between quick treatment and homogeneous distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses water as an intermediary substance. By introducing water together with the rinse additive after saturation, the water acts as a medium that facilitates uniform distribution of the additive across the saturated laundry, preventing direct concentrated contact that would cause inhomogeneous treatment.
2Duration of action of moving object
If rinse additive is added in previous rinsing cycles, then the treatment starts earlier, but the desired properties like softness are not achieved uniformly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of laundry saturation state by ensuring the laundry is saturated with water before adding the rinse additive. This parameter change creates optimal conditions for uniform additive distribution and reaction, achieving desired properties uniformly regardless of when in the cycle the additive is introduced.
3Loss of time
If laundry is not saturated with water before adding rinse additive, then the process is shorter, but the additive attaches only to specific parts causing inhomogeneous distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by saturating the laundry with water before introducing the rinse additive. This preparatory step ensures that the laundry is in a saturated state, which allows for more progressive reaction and better distribution of the additive throughout all parts of the laundry, resolving the contradiction between quick treatment and homogeneous distribution.
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 approach ensures a homogeneous distribution of rinse additives, improving the quality of laundry treatment by ensuring all laundry items receive the desired benefits, such as softness, while reducing the risk of stains or halos.
Implementation Method 1
The laundry is provided with a saturation amount of water for saturating the laundry
Data Source
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AI summary
Method for treating laundry in a laundry washing machine (220) of the type comprising: - a rotatable perforated washing drum (248) provided with holes and adapted to receive laundry; - a washing tub (228) external to said washing drum (248); - a water supply circuit (296) comprising at least one supply valve (302, 308) to supply fresh water into said washing tub (228); - a detergent supplier (300) to supply detergent into said washing tub (228); - a rinse additive supplier (306) to supply at least one rinse additive into said washing tub (248); the method comprising - at least one washing phase during which said laundry is washed with introduction of water and said detergent into said washing tub (228) and tumbled by rotation of said washing drum (248); - at least one successive draining phase for draining liquid from said washing tub and following said draining phase at least one rinsing step in which said laundry is soaked with water; and - a final rinsing step in which said laundry is treated by means of the rinse additive, and including an additive supply step, wherein water is introduced into the tub together with the additive, whereby before said additive supply step (44), in a saturation step (32) said laundry is provided with a saturation amount of water for saturating said laundry.