Patent Application
20120180830
The invention relates to a household appliance, in particular a household dishwasher, at least having an operating display with at least one visual display means.
When consumer organizations rate household appliances, the energy consumption of the household appliance, in particular also its annual energy balance sheet, plays a significant role. Household appliances have an operating display with at least visual display means, for example LEDs, which can be used during the operation of the household appliance to display operating parameters, etc. and after completion of a treatment cycle according to a program to indicate that the treatment cycle has been completed. However after the end of the program the household appliance remains connected to the power supply network until the customer actively intervenes and deactivates the household appliance by actuating the main switch.
The object of the invention is to provide a household appliance, in particular a household dishwasher, with which energy consumption is further reduced.
According to the invention after completion of a treatment cycle the household appliance is isolated from a power supply network supplying said household appliance with electrical energy and the visual display means are configured to display at least the completion of the completed treatment cycle after isolation from the supply network. In this process the household appliance is completely isolated from the power supply network so that no standby losses occur, for example by means of a self-deactivation device, which has a self-holding contact circuit, which brings about automatic isolation of the household appliance from the power supply network after completion of a treatment program or a wash program of a dishwasher without operator intervention. This means that no energy has to be expended to display this operating state. The information about the operating state conveyed by the display means can therefore be maintained without energy being supplied from the power supply network.
This can be achieved with various embodiments. According to one variant the display means can have an electronic paper, which can display text and/or images permanently without a power supply, in other words a conservation voltage. The display can be changed at a later time by supplying power. Alternatively the display means can have mechanical displays or information holders, for example boards, which pivot immediately before an operating state comes into being and thus display the operating state. Alternatively the display means can have a memory metal element, which when current is flowing through take up a first position and in the power-free state take up a second position, thereby actuating mechanical display means.
As an alternative to the above embodiments the display means can be fed by means of a capacitor in a state that is independent of the power supply network. The display means themselves can be configured here in an energy-saving manner as what are known as low-power LEDs or transflective LCDs.
In one preferred embodiment the visual display means can indicate the completion of the treatment cycle, i.e. a wash cycle, or operation readiness of the household appliance in the energy-free state. This embodiment is based on tests, which show that the time period between completion of the actual treatment cycle and a following treatment cycle can be in the region of hours or days. If in the case of commercially available household appliances the main switch is not deactivated after the end of the treatment cycle, the visual display means in particular, which indicate the end of the program, then remain activated until the following treatment cycle. The energy consumption of the household appliance can thus be tangibly increased in the annual energy balance sheet. With the inventive feature in contrast the energy consumption resulting from the program end display is reduced to 0, so the above-mentioned overall energy consumption is correspondingly reduced in the annual energy balance sheet.
As already mentioned above, the display means can have a mechanically displaceable information holder, which can be displaced to display different operating states. The information holder can be made to overlap partially with a display viewing window of the display means. When the information holder is mechanically displaced, different display segments of the information holder can be made to overlap with the display viewing window, with the result that the different operating states can be displayed.
The information holder can be displaced between the two operating states by means of an in particular electrical actuator.
In one energy-saving embodiment a voltage pulse can simply be applied to the actuator to switch from a display of the first operating state to a display of the second operating state, the actuator being otherwise energy-free. In a further variant energy can be applied permanently to the actuator to display the first operating state, for example the abovementioned treatment cycle. The actuator then only switches automatically to the second operating state when it is in an energy-free state.
The actuator can be configured for example as an electromagnetic, linearly displaceable control element having a working rod, which is fastened to a magnet armature and can be displaced linearly by means of an electromagnetic coil.
Alternatively the actuator can have a memory metal element, which, when current is passed through it, moves the information holder to a first position to display the first operating state to a position to display the second operating state.
Alternatively the actuator can be embodied as a bistable actuator, which, when no current is passed through it, takes up at least a first position to display the first operating state or a second position to display the second operating state. The bistable actuator can be switched by means of electrical actuation from the first to the second position and vice versa. Electrical actuation can be produced by means of a voltage pulse.
Provision is also preferably made for the on switch and an off switch to be connected in a parallel manner. The power supply network can be in contact for example with an on switch configured as a microswitch and the switching element connected parallel to this. When the household appliance is out of operation, both the on switch and the switching element are open. Actuation by pressing of the microswitch allows the deactivated, i.e. open, switching element of the self-holding contact circuit to be bridged, with the result that a voltage pulse is applied to the control device. The voltage pulse is directed by way of the control device to the self-holding contact circuit, with the result that the self-holding contact circuit closes the switching element. This allows current from the network to flow by way of the now closed switching element to the self-holding contact circuit so that the switching element remains closed in a stable manner, while the on switch is opened again. As soon as the control device directs the deactivation signal to the self-holding contact circuit, said circuit opens the switching element, causing the power supply into the household appliance to be interrupted.
Provision is preferably made here for an equally high electrical voltage to be present at the on switch and the off switch. This allows a particularly simple structure.
Provision is preferably made here for the on switch and the off switch to be connected to the control device in such a manner that an activation and/or deactivation pulse is transmitted. Provision is preferably also made for the power supply unit to be disposed in such a manner that it forms a series circuit with the on switch and the off switch. Provision is also preferably made for the control device to be connected to the power supply unit in such a manner that it can be supplied with electrical energy. Provision is furthermore preferably made for the operating display to be connected to the power supply unit in such a manner that it can be provided with electrical energy. Finally provision is preferably made for the self-holding contact circuit to be assigned to a controller that can be actuated by the control device.
The self-holding contact circuit can preferably have a bistable relay, to which a relay contact acting as a switching element can be connected. Such a bistable relay is primarily characterized by the attribute that in the power-free state it can adopt two different stable switching states. A relay contact of the bistable relay can also be connected as a switching element in the main supply line of the household appliance. When the deactivation signal is applied to the bistable relay, it switches the relay contact from a stable power-free open state to a stable power-free closed state or vice versa, with the result that the household appliance is decoupled completely from the network or connected to it. A flipflop, in particular an RS flipflop, can be used instead of a relay.
Provision is also preferably made for the self-holding contact circuit to be connected to the off switch in such a manner that the off switch can be switched to an open state so that isolation from the supply voltage is possible in a simple manner.
In one preferred embodiment provision is made for it to be possible for the display means to be supplied with electrical energy from an energy storage unit of the household appliance after isolation from the power supply network. Thus a display means is used which consumes electrical energy when used. For example components demonstrating very low energy consumption can be used, for example low power LEDs or transflective LCDs, to ensure an adequate operating time.
Provision is preferably made here for it to be possible to recharge the energy storage unit with electrical energy when the household appliance is connected to the power supply network. This is the case for example when the household appliance is taken into operation again, so that an adequate operating time is always ensured.
The energy storage unit can be for example an accumulator, which is assigned to the display means, in other words only supplies this with electrical energy when the household appliance is isolated from the power supply network. Provision is preferably made for the energy storage unit to be a capacitor of an electrical drive unit of the household appliance, in particular a pump motor. It is thus not necessary to provide an additional accumulator but for example a capacitor of an electronic motor unit actuating the pump motor, which serves as an intermediate circuit capacitor, can be used.
Two exemplary embodiments of the invention are described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
Input means E are also provided, which can be used to input operating parameters for a wash cycle of the household dishwasher.
The microswitch ES provided in the left region of the control panel B in
The power supply unit NT converts the network voltage of for example 230 V to a low voltage of 12 V. The low voltage 12V is converted by means of a regulator RG connected in series downstream of the power supply unit NT to a low voltage of 5 V, which is supplied to a control device SE. The power supply unit NT also supplies other appliance components and the visual display means AZ1 and AZ2 of the operating display BA of the household dishwasher with low voltage by way of additional outputs.
The control device SE is integrated in a control module (not shown in detail) and during the execution of a wash program actuates the visual display means AZ1 of the operating display BA by way of a first signal line SL1 and the visual display means AZ2 and further appliance components, for example the drain pump or the circulating pump, by way of a second signal line SL2 by means of control signals SE.
The control device SE also controls the display means AZ2 of the operating display BA by way of the second signal line SL2, to indicate the end of the program of the household dishwasher.
The display means AZ2 is shown in more detail in a first exemplary embodiment in
As also shown in
An electromagnetic coil EMS is positioned on the outer circumference of the armature housing AG. It is supplied by the power supply unit NT with a low voltage of 12V by way of connecting lines SA. Connected in the upper connecting line SA in
In the open position of the off switch AS2 shown in
As also shown in
When the household dishwasher is out of operation both the microswitch ES and the switching element AS1 are open, so that a power supply to the household dishwasher is interrupted. The deactivated household dishwasher is brought into operation by actuation by pressing of the microswitch ES into its closed position, causing the initially still open switching element AS to be bridged. The actuation by pressing of the microswitch ES causes a voltage pulse to be supplied, which is directed by way of the power supply unit NT and by way of the regulator RG to the control device SE.
The control device SE then forwards an activation signal Son, to the bistable relay RE causing its relay coil to attract and the switching element AS1 to be switched from the power-free stable open state to an equally power-free stable closed state. This causes the microswitch ES, which after actuation by pressing is again open, to be bridged by the now closed switching element AS, with the result that the network voltage is present at the power supply unit NT.
The household dishwasher is therefore switched to operation readiness so that a wash program can then be started by means of the input means E. During the wash cycle the visual display means AZ1 display the respectively set operating parameters. Also during the wash cycle a control signal generated by the control device SE is applied to the visual display means AZ2 by way of the signal line SL2.
This applied control signal moves the off switch AS2 in the upper connecting line SA of the actuator AK according to
After the end of the wash cycle, the control device SE deactivates the appliance components, for example the drain pump or circulating pump. Immediately after completion of the wash program the control device SE also generates a voltage pulse, which as a deactivation signal Soff by way of the third signal line SL3 actuates the bistable relay RE. The relay RE then switches the switching element AS1 from the power-free stable closed position to the power-free stable open position, with the result that the household dishwasher is completely isolated from the power supply network.
Therefore after completion of the wash program no electrical energy is consumed to display the end of the program.
Once the household dishwasher has been completely deactivated, the power supply to the actuator AK of the visual display means AZ2 is also interrupted so that the spring-tensioned transmission rod US of the magnet armature MA is pushed by the spring force of the compression spring DF into its original position, in which the display segment “OFF” of the information holder IT overlaps with the viewing window SF, so that the program end of the wash cycle of the household dishwasher is displayed in a power-free manner.
As also shown in
On detection of such a voltage pulse the control device SE checks whether the power supply unit NT is already activated when the microswitch ES is activated by pressing. If the power supply unit NT is not yet activated, the control device SE identifies activation actuation by the user and uses the activation signal Son, as described above, to actuate the relay RE. If the power supply unit NT is already activated, the control device SE identifies a deactivation actuation by the user from the actuation by pressing of the microswitch, so the control device SE directs a corresponding deactivation signal Soff to the relay RE. The household dishwasher is then taken out of operation. Any ongoing wash program is therefore interrupted.
The actuator AK shown in
The memory metal element ME is supported in a fixed position by its left end in
As in the first exemplary embodiment the off switch AS2 is connected for signal transmission purposes SL2 to the control device SE. During the wash cycle this controls the off switch AS2 into its closed position. The memory metal element ME, which then has current flowing through it, retracts as a result counter to the spring force of the pretensioning spring VF, with the result that the display segment “RUN” appears in the viewing window SF, indicating that the wash program is running.
After the end of the program, as described with reference to
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2009 045 591.4 | Oct 2009 | DE | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP10/64205 | 9/27/2010 | WO | 00 | 3/28/2012 |
