Patent Grant
11859637
The present invention relates to a washing machine and more particularly to a washing machine having nozzles configured to spray water, discharged from a tub and circulating along a circulation pipe, into a drum.
In general, a washing machine is an apparatus for removing a contaminant adhered to clothes, bedding, etc. (hereinafter, referred to as ‘the laundry’) using a chemical disintegration of water and a detergent and a physical operation such as a friction between water and the laundry.
Such a washing machine includes a tub containing water, and a drum rotatably provided in the tub to receive laundry. There are recently developed washing machines configured to circulate water discharged from the tub using a circulation pump, and to spray the circulated water (hereinafter, referred to as “circulating water”) into the drum through nozzles.
In order to spray circulating water into the drum in multiple directions, a structure where the nozzle is provided in plural may be considered.
Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2014-0030187 (hereinafter, referred to as Related Art) discloses a washing machine including two nozzles at a gasket and a pump configured to supply circulating water to the two nozzles at the same time. The pump pumps water, discharged through a tub through a drain bellows, to a pair of circulation horses respectively connected to the pair of the nozzles at the same time, and accordingly, once the pump operates, water is sprayed through the pair of nozzles at the same time.
Specifically, the pump may include an impeller capable of being rotated by a motor, and a pump housing in which the impeller is housed. The pump housing includes a pair of discharge outlets through which water pumped by rotation of the impeller is discharged, and the pair of discharge outlets is connected to the pair of circulation horses, respectively.
In order to uniformly control an amount of water to be sprayed through the respective nozzles, an equal amount of water should be discharged through the pair of outlet ports. However, one of the pair of discharge outlets located at upper streams in a direction of rotation of the impeller discharges water at a relatively high flow rate, and thus, there are difficulties in discharging water at the same flow rate through the pair of nozzles.
Further, if the motor is not capable of controlling a direction of rotation thereof and the direction of rotation of the motor is determined randomly at each driving operation, it is not possible to predict that a larger amount of water is discharged through which one of the nozzles.
An object of the present invention is to provide a washing machine capable of, when circulating water pumped by a pump is supplied to nozzles through a first distribution pipe and a second distribution pipe, distributing the water uniformly to the first distribution pipe and the second distribution pipe.
In particular, an object of the present invention is to compensate for an amount of water discharged through a first circulation port positioned at an a downstream side in a direction of rotation of an impeller so that water can be discharged uniformly through the first circulation port and a second circulation port positioned at an upstream side.
Objects of the present invention should not be limited to the aforementioned objects and other unmentioned objects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.
In a washing machine of the present invention, a first circulation port and a second circulation port are formed in a pump housing, and water (hereinafter, referred to as circulating water) is discharged through the first circulation port and the second circulation port upon rotation of the impeller.
A first nozzle for spraying circulating water, supplied through the first circulation, port into a drum, and a second nozzle for spraying circulating water, supplied through the second circulation, port into the drum are provided.
In the pump housing, a cut-off point is formed to branch water into a first flow to run along the direction of rotation of the impeller and a second flow to run toward an entrance hole of the first circulation port.
The inner circumferential surface includes a rotating water current guide part extending in the direction of rotation of the impeller, and a biased water current guide part extending from the rotating water current guide part toward the first circulation port. The biased water current guide part forms an angle greater than 180° relative to the rotating water current guide part.
The rotating water current guide part guides the first flow to the second circulation port, and the second flow is guided to the first circulation port by the biased water current guide part.
The biased water current guide part may extend from the cut-off point with a directional component opposite to the direction of rotation of the impeller. The cut-off point may be formed at a location spaced apart from the entrance hole of the first circulation port toward a center of rotation of the impeller.
The first circulation port and the second circulation port may extend in parallel with each other. The biased water current guide part may form, at the cut-off point, an acute angle relative to a line component parallel to the first circulation port in the direction of rotation of the impeller.
There may be provided a controller configured to control a direction of rotation of the pump motor.
In another aspect of the present invention, on the inner circumferential surface of the pump housing, an entrance hole of the first circulation port and an entrance hole of the second circulation port are disposed in an acute-angle area forming a predetermined acute angle relative to a center of rotation of the impeller on the inner circumferential surface
A rotating water current guide part extends to the entrance hole of the second circulation port by passing through a reflex-angle area forming a reflex angle relative to the acute angle along the direction of rotation of the impeller from the cut-off point.
The biased water current guide part is bent at the cut-off point from the rotating water current guide part to thereby guide the second flow to the first circulation port.
The rotating water current guide part and the biased water current guide part may form an edge.
The biased water current guide part may extend in a direction in which a normal line and an obtuse angle are formed relative to the rotating water current guide part at the cut-off point.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the first circulation port is disposed between the cut-off point and the second circulation port, and a distance from the center of rotation of the impeller is shorter than a distance from the center of rotation of the impeller to the first circulation port.
The details of other embodiments are included in the following description and the accompanying drawings.
According to a washing machine of the present invention, an amount of water to be discharged through a first circulation port is supplemented with water branched at a cut-off point formed in an inner circumferential surface of a pump housing, and the amount of water to be discharged through the first circulation port may be equal to an amount of water to be discharged through a second circulation port located at an upper stream side compared to the first circulation port.
Since water currents are guided with uniform pressure and volume through a first distribution pipe connected to the first circulation port and a second distribution pipe connected to the second circulation port, nozzles connected to the distribution pipes may spray water in a symmetrical shape. For example, if a first nozzle(s) connected to the first distribution pipe and a second nozzle(s) connected to the second distribution pipe are arranged symmetrically, water streams sprayed through the first nozzle(s) and the second nozzle(s) may be symmetrical.
Effects of the present invention should not be limited to the aforementioned effects and other unmentioned effects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the claims.
The embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the following drawings in which like reference numerals refer to like elements wherein:
Advantages and features of the present disclosure and methods to achieve them will become apparent from the descriptions of exemplary embodiments herein below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to exemplary embodiments disclosed herein but may be implemented in various different ways. The exemplary embodiments are provided for making the disclosure of the present disclosure thorough and for fully conveying the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. It is to be noted that the scope of the present disclosure is defined only by the claims. Like reference numerals denote like elements throughout the descriptions.
Referring to
A front panel 11 having a laundry entry hole 12 formed therein may be disposed at front of the casing 10. A door 20 for opening and closing the laundry entry hole 12, and a dispenser 14 to which detergent is introduced may be installed at the front panel 11.
In addition, a water supply valve 15, a water supply pipe 16, and a water supply horse 17 may be installed inside the casing 10. Upon a water supply, wash water having passed through the water supply valve 15 and the water supply pipe 16 may be mixed with detergent in the dispenser 14 and then supplied to the tub 30 through the water supply horse 17.
Meanwhile, a direct water supply pipe 18 may be connected to the water supply valve 15 so that wash water is not mixed with detergent but supplied directly to the tub 30 through the direct water supply pipe 18. There may be provided a direct nozzle 19 for spraying water, supplied through the direct water supply pipe 18, into the drum 40.
Referring to
The distribution pipes 80(1) and 80(2) may be formed of synthetic resin that is harder or stiffer than the gasket 60. The distribution pipes 80(1) and 80(2) maintains a predetermined shape in spite of vibration occurring during operation of the washing machine, and the distribution pipes 80(1) and 80(2) are rigid relative to the gasket 60, which is so flexible to transforms in response to vibration of the tub 30.
In addition, circulation pipes 86(a) and 86(2) may be so flexible to transform in response to vibration of the tub 30. In this case, the distribution pipes 80(1) and 80(2) may be formed of synthetic resin that is more solid or stiffer than the circulation pipes 86(1) and 86(2).
The pump 70 and the tub 30 are connected via a discharge horse 72, and the first distribution pipe 80(1) and the second distribution pipe 80(2) are connected to the pump 70 by the first circulation pipe 86(1) and the second circulation pipe 86(2). The pump 70 includes a first circulation port 71b connected to the first circulation pipe 86(1), and a second circulation port 71c connected to the second circulation pipe 86(2).
When the pump 70 operates, wash water contained in the tub 30 may be sprayed into the drum 40 through the first distribution pipe 80(1) and the second distribution pipe 80(2) such that the wash water circulates. The pump 70 may be connected to a drain pipe 74 to thereby discharge the wash water to the outside through the drain pipe 74.
The above-described pump 70 functions as a circulation pump for circulating pump and as a drain pump for discharging wash water. On the contrary, the circulation pump and the drain pump may be installed separately. In the case where the circulation pump and the drain pump are installed separately, it is obvious that the drain pipe 74 is connected to the drain pump and that the first circulation pipe 86(1) and the second circulation pipe 86(2) are connected to the circulation pump.
Meanwhile, the tub 30 may be formed as a single tub body or may be formed as a first tub body 30a and a second tub body 30b are fastened to each other. Regarding the embodiment of the present invention, the example in which the first tub body 39a and the second tub body 30b are fastened to form the tub 30 is described. Hereinafter, the first tub body 30a will be referred to merely as a “tub” 30.
An opening is formed on a front surface 31 of the tub 30 to correspond to the laundry entry hole 12 formed in the front panel 11. The gasket 60 is disposed between an edge of the laundry entry hole 12 formed in the front panel 11, the edge which defines the laundry entry hole 12, and an edge of the tub 30, the edge which defines the opening. The gasket 60 is formed of a flexible substance such as rubber and has an approximate cylindrical shape. For example, the gasket 60 may be formed of a substance such as Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM), Thermo Plastic Elastomer (TPE), or the like, but aspects of the present invention are not limited thereto.
A front edge of the gasket 60 is connected to the edge of the laundry entry hole 12, and a rear edge of the gasket 60 is connected to the edge of the opening of the tub 30, thereby sealing between the tub 30 and the front panel 11. The door 20 and a front end of the gasket 60 are tightly brought into contact in the state in which the door 20 is closed, sealing between the door 20 and the gasket 60 to thereby prevent a leakage of water wash.
Referring to
A pipe 80 may include an inlet port 81 through which water discharged from the pump 70 is introduced, a transport conduit 82 which guides the water introduced through the inlet port 81, and a plurality of outlet ports 83 and 84 which are branched from the transport conduit 82.
Through the inlet port 81, water discharged from the pump 70 is introduced. The inlet port 81 may be connected to the pump 70 by the circulation pipe 86(1). The pump 70 may include a circulation port through which circulating water is discharged, and the number of which corresponds to the number of the distribution pipes 80. In the present embodiments, the pump 70 includes a first circulation port and a second circulation port, wherein the first circulation port is connected to an inlet port 81 of the first distribution pipe 80(1) by the first circulation pipe 86(1) and the second circulation port is connected to an inlet port 81 of the second distribution pipe 80(2) by the second circulation pipe 86(2).
The transport conduit 82 is positioned external to a passage 60P defined by the gasket 60, and guides water, introduced through the inlet port 81, in an upward direction. The transport conduit 82 constitutes a flow path communicating with the inlet port 81, and the flow path may be bent in a shape approximately corresponding to an outer circumferential surface of the gasket 60 and extends in an up-down direction.
The plurality of outlet ports 83 and 84 are branched from the transport conduit 82. Circulating water transported along the transport conduit 82 is discharged through the plurality of outlet ports 83 and 84. The outlet ports 83 and 84 are branched from the transport conduit 82 from above the inlet port 81. That is, an entrance hole of each of the outlet ports 83 and 84 (which is a portion of each of the outlet ports 83 and 84 being connected to the transport conduit 82) is located further higher than the exit of the inlet port 81 (which is a portion of the inlet port 81 being connected to the transport conduit 82).
The plurality of outlet ports 83 and 84 includes two outlet ports 83 and 84 formed at different heights. Hereinafter, a lower outlet port in the two outlet ports 83 and 84 is referred to as a lower outlet port 83, and the other outlet port located higher than the lower outlet port 83 is referred to as an upper outlet port 84.
First to fourth port receiving pipes 64a, 64b, 64c, and 64d may be formed on an outer circumferential surface 61 of the gasket 60 to protrude outwardly so as to correspond to four outlet ports 83 and 84, respectively. The four outlet ports 83 and 84 may be inserted into and connected to the first to fourth port receiving pipes 64a, 64b, 64c, and 64d.
At least one pair of nozzles for spraying water into the drum 40 is provided. In the present embodiment, first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d respectively communicating with the first to fourth port receiving pipes 64a, 64b, 64c, and 64d are provided on an inner circumferential surface 62 of the gasket 60. In an embodiment of the present invention, the first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d are formed integrally with the integrally with the gasket 60. On the contrary, the first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d may be formed as components separately from the gasket 60 and coupled to the gasket 60 or may be separated from the gasket 60 and flow-path-connected to the first to fourth port receiving pipes 64a, 64b, 64c, and 64d via a separate flow path connecting member (not shown).
First to Fourth protrusions 65a, 65b, 65c, and 65d may protrude toward the interior of the gasket 60 from the inner circumferential surface 62 of the gasket 60, and the first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d may be formed at the first to fourth protrusions 65a, 65b, 65c, and 65d, respectively. Accordingly, circulating water discharged through the outlet ports 83 and 84 in the respective distribution piping 80(1) and 80(2) may be sprayed into the drum 40 through the first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d.
The number of each of port receiving pipes 64, protrusions 65, and nozzles 66, and positions thereof may be modified, as does the number of outlet ports 84.
The first to fourth nozzles 66a, 66b, 66c, and 66d may include nozzles 66a and 66b to which water is supplied through the first distribution piping 80(1), and nozzles 66c and 66d to which water is supplied through the second distribution pipe 80(2). Hereinafter, when necessary to distinguish, the nozzles to which water is supplied through the first distribution piping 80(1) are referred to as first nozzles 66a and 66b, and the nozzles to which water is supplied through the second distribution pipe 80(2) are referred to as second nozzles 66c and 66d.
In addition, among the nozzles 66a and 66b or 66c and 66d to which water is supplied through the distributing pipe 80(1) or 80(2), a nozzle at an upper position is an upper nozzle 66b or 66d, and a nozzle at a position lower than the upper nozzle 66b or 66d is a lower nozzle 66a or 66c. That is, a first lower nozzle 66a and a first upper nozzle 66b, to which water is supplied through the first distribution piping 80(1), and a second lower nozzle 66c and a second upper nozzle 66d, to which water is supplied through the second distribution piping 80(2), are provided in the gasket 60 in the present embodiment.
Referring to
The pump motor 73 is capable of controlling a direction of rotation. For example, the pump motor 73 may be preferably, but not limited to, a Brushless Direct Current Motor (BLDG).
There may be provided a controller (not shown) that controls a direction of rotation of the pump motor 73. The controller may include a processor that accesses a medium, in which a program is recorded, to thereby perform computation according to the recorded program. Further, the controller may control not just the pump motor 73 but also other electronic components included in the washing machine.
The pump housing 71 forms a space 71s where the impeller 72 is housed. The pump housing 71 includes a water introducing port 71a, along which water discharged from the tub 30 is guided to the space 71s, and a first circulation port 71b and a second circulation port 71c, through which water pumped by the impeller 72 is discharged. The first circulation port 71b and the second circulation port 71c are connected to the first circulation pipe 86(1) and the second circulation pipe 86(2). Thus, a water current formed upon rotation of the impeller 72 by the pump motor 73 is discharged through the first circulation port 71b and the second circulation port 71c at the same time. In this case, water discharged through the first circulation port 71b is supplied to the first distribution pipe 80(1) through the first circulation pipe 86(1), and water discharged through the second circulation port 71c is supplied to the second distribution pipe 80(2) through the second circulation pipe 86(2).
In the pump housing 71, an inner circumferential surface 710 defining the space 71s includes a rotating water current guide part 711 and a biased current guide part 712. The rotating water current guide part 711 extends in a direction of rotation of the impeller 72 from a cut-off point 75, at which a first flow F1 running in the direction of rotation of the impeller 72 and a second flow F2 running toward the entrance hole of the first circulation port 71b are branched. The first circulation port 71b is disposed between the cut-off point 75 and the second circulation port 71c, and a distance from the center of rotation O of the impeller 72 to the cut-off point 75 may be shorter than a distance from the center of rotation to the first circulation port 71b.
While extending along a circumference of the impeller 72, the rotating water current guide part 711 may form a curved surface that is rolled in the direction of rotation of the impeller, and the first flow F1 is guided to the second circulation port 71c by the rotating water current guide part 711.
While extending from the cut-off point 75, the biased water current guide part 712 may form an angle greater than 180° relative to the rotating water current guide part 711. The rotating water current guide part 711 and the biased water current guide part 712 may form an edge, respectively, and the edge may constitute the cut-off point 75.
The biased water current guide part 712 extends from the rotating water current guide part 711 in a direction Vd, which is biased from the radial direction Vcr in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the impeller 72, thereby guiding a water current (or the first flow F1) guided by the rotating water current guide part 711 to the first circulation port 71b.
Due to this structure, the second circulation port 71c discharges a first portion of the first flow F1, and the first circulation port 71b discharges an amount of water added with a second flow F2 that is branched at the cut-off point 75 in a second portion of water corresponding to the rest of the first flow F1.
Suppose that the cut-off point 75 does not exist, that the inner circumferential surface 710 is symmetric between the left and right sides, and that the impeller 72 rotates in a counter-clockwise direction with reference to
On the contrary, in the present invention, the second flow F2 branched at the cut-off point 75 is further discharged through the first circulation port 71b. Accordingly, it is possible to increase the discharge flowrate of the first circulation port 71b, compared to the conventional technology, and to reduce a deviation in the discharge flow rate between the first circulation port 71b and the second circulation port 71c.
Meanwhile, the cut-off point 75 may be formed at a location spaced apart from an entrance hole h1 of the first circulation port 71b toward the center of rotation O of the impeller 72. The biased water current guide part 712 may extend, from the cut-off point 75, with a component (which is a component of the direction Vc in
The first circulation port 71b and the second circulation port 71c may extend in parallel with each other. At the cut-off point 75, the biased water current guide part 712 may form an acute angle θ relative to a line component Vr, which is parallel to the first circulation port 71b, in the direction of rotation of the impeller 72.
On the inner circumferential surface 710 of the pump housing 71, an entrance hole h1 of the first circulation port 71b and an entrance hole h2 of the second circulation port 71c may be disposed in an acute-angle area SE1 that forms a predetermined acute angle relative to the center of rotation of the impeller 72. In this case, the rotating water current guide part 711 extends to the entrance hole h2 of the second circulation port 71c by passing through a reflex-angle area SE2, forming a reflex angle relative to the acute angle, along the direction of rotation of the impeller 72 from the cut-off point 75. In addition, the biased water current guide part 712 is bent at the cut-off point 75 to thereby guide the second flow F2 to the first circulation port 71b.
Although some embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and that various modifications, changes, alterations and variations can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it should be understood that the above embodiments are provided for illustration only and are not to be construed in any way as limiting the present invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2018-0074394 | Jun 2018 | KR | national |
| 10-2019-0075430 | Jun 2019 | KR | national |
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/454,967, filed on Jun. 27, 2019, which claims the priority benefit of Korean Application No. 10-2019-0075430, filed on Jun. 25, 2019, and Korean Application No. 10-2018-0074394, filed on Jun. 27, 2018. The disclosures of the prior applications are incorporated by reference in their entirety.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20160130740 | Im et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
| 20170356120 | Choi et al. | Dec 2017 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20220090606 A1 | Mar 2022 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 16454967 | Jun 2019 | US |
| Child | 17544030 | US |
