U.S. patent application number 11/110794 was filed with the patent office on 2006-03-09 for washing machine.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Chang Hyun Kim, Hyun Bae Kim, Chang Joo Park.
Application Number | 20060048548 11/110794 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36155512 |
Filed Date | 2006-03-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060048548 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Park; Chang Joo ; et
al. |
March 9, 2006 |
Washing machine
Abstract
A washing machine for minimizing damage to laundry and enabling
effective washing of the laundry. The washing machine includes a
water tub, a drum, and a control unit. The drum is installed in the
water tub so as to rotate in a forward and/or a reverse direction.
The control unit controls the rotation directions and angles of the
rotation of the drum to cause an asymmetric swing motion of the
drum.
Inventors: |
Park; Chang Joo; (Seoul,
KR) ; Kim; Hyun Bae; (Yogin-City, KR) ; Kim;
Chang Hyun; (Suwon-City, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STAAS & HALSEY LLP
SUITE 700
1201 NEW YORK AVENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
36155512 |
Appl. No.: |
11/110794 |
Filed: |
April 21, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
68/12.06 ;
68/23R |
Current CPC
Class: |
D06F 35/006 20130101;
D06F 2204/06 20130101; D06F 2202/06 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
068/012.06 ;
068/023.00R |
International
Class: |
D06F 33/00 20060101
D06F033/00; D06F 35/00 20060101 D06F035/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 8, 2004 |
KR |
2004-71895 |
Claims
1. A washing machine comprising: a water tub; a drum in the water
tub, the drum being rotatable in a forward rotation direction at a
forward rotation angle and a reverse rotation direction opposite of
the forward direction at a reverse rotation angle; and a control
unit adapted to control the rotation directions and angles to yield
asymmetric swing motion of the drum.
2. The machine according to claim 1, wherein the control unit
controls the rotation angles so that the forward angle of the drum
is greater than the reverse angle of the drum during the asymmetric
swing motion.
3. A washing machine comprising: a water tub; a drum in the water
tub, the drum being rotatable in a forward direction and a reverse
rotation direction opposite of the forward direction; and a control
unit adapted to control the rotation of the drum to yield an
asymmetric swing motion of the drum, wherein during the asymmetric
swing motion, the control unit controls forward and reverse
rotation angles so that a reference position of the drum is
displaced in the forward rotation direction.
4. The machine according to claim 3, wherein the control unit
controls the rotation angles so that the forward rotation angle is
greater than the reverse rotation angle to cause gradual
displacement of the reference position.
5. A washing machine control method, comprising: determining
whether a set wash mode is an asymmetrical swing mode in which a
drum is alternately rotated in a forward direction and a reverse
direction by respective forward and reverse angles; asymmetrically
swinging the drum, when the set wash mode is the asymmetrical swing
mode, so that the drum alternately rotates in the forward direction
and the reverse direction by the respective forward and reverse
rotation angles, the alternately rotating causing one of a net
forward rotation of the drum and a net reverse rotation of the
drum.
6. The washing machine control method of claim 5, wherein the
forward rotation angle is 60.degree. and the reverse rotation angle
is 45.degree..
7. The washing machine control method of claim 5, wherein a
difference between the forward and the reverse rotation angles is
15.degree..
8. The washing machine control method of claim 5, wherein the one
of the rotation angles is greater than the other of the angles.
9. The washing machine control method of claim 5, wherein the
alternately rotating yields continuous overturn of laundry in the
drum.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent
Application No. 2004-71895 filed on Sep. 8, 2004 in the Korean
Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a washing machine, and more
particularly to a drum type washing machine having a drum adapted
to rotate about a horizontal rotation axis.
[0004] 2. Description of Related Art
[0005] A conventional drum type washing machine generally includes
a water tub installed in a machine body and adapted to contain wash
or rinsing water, and a drum installed in the water tub, the drum
being rotated by a driving force from a motor and being adapted to
carry out laundry wash and spin-dry cycles. Such a drum is
perforated with a plurality of small holes, allowing the wash or
rinsing water to flow between the drum and the water tub and, in
the spin-dry cycle, to centrifugally drain water from laundry, the
water to be discharged into a space between the drum and the water
tub through the small holes.
[0006] In the above-described drum type washing machine, when the
drum rotates, the laundry in the drum is raised along an inner
peripheral wall surface of the drum, and then dropped due to
gravity from the vicinity of an apex, so that the laundry is washed
by way of shock and friction generated during the dropping.
[0007] However, the above-described general washing manner using
the drum type washing machine has a problem in that the laundry,
specifically, silk or wool laundry, is vulnerable to damage by
shock or friction. In order to eliminate this problem, Japanese
Patent Laid-Open Publication Nos. H09-276582 and H09-248395
disclose control methods of drum type washing machines, which will
now be explained.
[0008] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H09-276582 discusses
minimizing damage to the laundry by repeatedly swinging the drum
during the rotation thereof within an extent not causing movement
of the laundry. In this case, however, since a two-revolution
operation of the drum is added in the course of laundry douse and
wash cycles for overturning the laundry, resulting in a limited
reduction in damage to the laundry.
[0009] In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H09-248395, the wash cycle
of the laundry is divided into first half and second half periods.
During the first half period, the wash water in the water tub is
kept at a first level and the drum rotates by a first rotation
angle, causing the laundry to be dropped and overturned. In
succession, during the remaining second half period, the wash water
in the water tub is kept at a second level higher than the first
level and the drum rotates by a second rotation angle smaller than
the first rotation angle, allowing the laundry to be swung in a
completely immersed state in the wash water so as to reduce damage
to the laundry. In this case, however, in order to sufficiently
douse the laundry with the wash water kept at a low level in the
laundry douse cycle, the laundry must be dropped from a high swing
angle of the drum. This may cause damage to the laundry.
[0010] Furthermore, although the swing angle of the drum must be
kept at 120.degree. in the wash cycle, such a swing angle is
insufficient to overturn the laundry and hence prevents complete
dousing of the laundry with the wash water and even washing of the
laundry. Therefore, this increases the usage of the wash water,
deteriorating a water saving advantage of the drum type washing
machine.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the problems
involved with the above-described conventional drum type washing
machines, and an aspect of the invention is to provide a drum type
washing machine which can minimize damage to laundry during washing
and enables effective washing of the laundry.
[0012] In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a washing machine including: a water tub; a drum in the
water tub, the drum being rotatable in a forward rotation direction
at a forward rotation angle and a reverse rotation direction
opposite of the forward direction at a reverse rotation angle; and
a control unit adapted to control the rotation directions and
angles to yield asymmetric swing motion of the drum.
[0013] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a washing machine including: a water tub; a drum
in the water tub, the drum being rotatable in a forward direction
and a reverse rotation direction opposite of the forward direction;
and a control unit adapted to control the rotation of the drum to
yield an asymmetric swing motion of the drum. During the asymmetric
swing motion, the control unit controls forward and reverse
rotation angles so that a reference position of the drum is
displaced in the forward rotation direction.
[0014] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a washing machine control method, including:
determining whether a set wash mode is an asymmetrical swing mode
in which a drum is alternately rotated in a forward direction and a
reverse direction by respective forward and reverse rotation
angles; asymmetrically swinging the drum, when the set wash mode is
the asymmetrical swing mode, so that the drum alternately rotates
in the forward direction and the reverse direction by the
respective forward and reverse rotation angles, the alternately
rotating causing one of a net forward rotation of the drum and a
net reverse rotation of the drum.
[0015] Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will
be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part,
will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice
of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the present
invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from
the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings of which:
[0017] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a drum type
washing machine according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
[0018] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control system of
the washing machine shown in FIG. 1;
[0019] FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a drum and water
tub of the washing machine shown in FIG. 1;
[0020] FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrammatic views illustrating the
asymmetric swing motion of the washing machine according to the
embodiment of the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating gradual forward
rotation of the drum caused by the asymmetric swing motion of the
washing machine according to the embodiment of the present
invention;
[0022] FIG. 6 is a graph explaining the concept of the gradual
forward rotation of the drum shown in FIG. 5; and
[0023] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a control method of the
washing machine according to the embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT
[0024] Reference will now be made in detail to an embodiment of the
present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the
like elements throughout. The embodiment is described below to
explain the present invention by referring to the figures.
[0025] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a drum type
washing machine according to an embodiment of the present
invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the drum type washing machine of the
present embodiment includes a water tub 102 installed in a machine
body 100 and adapted to contain wash or rinsing water. Installed in
the water tub 102 is a drum 108, which rotates upon receiving a
driving force from a motor 110 and is adapted to carry out laundry
wash and spin-dry cycles. Such a drum 108 is perforated with a
plurality of small holes at a peripheral wall thereof, allowing the
wash or rinsing water to flow between the drum 108 and the water
tub 102 and, in the spin-dry cycle, water centrifugally drained
from laundry to be discharged into a space between the drum 108 and
the water tub 102 through the small holes.
[0026] In the above-described drum type washing machine according
to the present embodiment, when the drum 108 rotates, the laundry
in the drum 108 is raised along an inner peripheral wall surface of
the drum 108, and then dropped due to gravity from the vicinity of
an apex (i.e., the highest point), so that the laundry is washed by
way of shock and friction generated during the dropping.
[0027] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control system of
the washing machine shown in FIG. 1. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2,
the washing machine according to the present embodiment includes: a
control unit 202, a water level sensor 204, and an input unit 206.
The control unit 202 controls the general operation of the washing
machine including douse, wash, rinsing, spin-dry and dehydration
(drying) cycles. The water level sensor 204 detects the level of
the wash water supplied in the water tub 102 and delivers the
detected water level value to the control unit 202. The input unit
206 enables for a user to select a desired wash mode, and transmits
the selected wash mode to the control unit 202.
[0028] The drum type washing machine according to the present
embodiment also includes a drive unit 210 adapted to drive the
motor 110, a drain pump 116, a dehydration heater 216, and a
display device 218. In the wash or rinsing cycle, the motor 110
rotates the drum 108 in forward or reverse directions for specified
periods, and in the spin-dry cycle, rotates the drum 108 at a high
speed. The drain pump 116 forcibly discharges the wash water from
the water tub 102, and the dehydration heater 216 heats air
introduced into the water tub 102, causing dehydration (drying) of
the laundry using the heated air. The display device 218 indicates
the operation state of the washing machine to a user.
[0029] FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the drum 108 and
the water tub 102 of the washing machine shown in FIG. 1. As shown
in FIG. 3, the drum 108 is positioned inside the water tub 102. The
water is supplied into the water tub 102, and flows into the drum
108 through the small holes perforated throughout the peripheral
wall of the drum 108. Under control of the control unit 202, the
drum 108 rotates in the forward or reverse directions.
[0030] In the above-described washing machine according to the
present embodiment, if the user selects a swing mode suitable to
minimize damage to the laundry, the drum 108 carries out an
asymmetric swing motion, rather than a continuous rotating motion,
during the laundry douse or wash cycle. FIGS. 4A and 4B are
diagrammatic views illustrating such an asymmetric swing motion of
the washing machine according to the present embodiment, FIG. 4A
showing a reverse rotation of the drum 108, and FIG. 4B showing a
forward rotation of the drum 108. As can be seen from FIGS. 4A and
4B, in the swing mode according to the present embodiment, a
forward rotation angle is larger than a reverse rotation angle. For
example, the drum 108 rotates in a reverse direction CW by an angle
of 45.degree. as shown in FIG. 4A, and then rotates in a forward
direction CCW by an angle of 60.degree., resulting in the forward
rotation of 15.degree.. That is, due to the difference between the
forward and reverse rotation angles as stated above, even if the
drum 108 alternately rotates in the forward direction CCW and the
reverse direction CW, the net effect is that drum 108 gradually
rotates in the forward direction CCW by an increment of 15.degree.
according to the progress of the swing motion. Consequently,
laundry 402 is rotated in the forward direction CCW by an increment
of 15.degree..
[0031] FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the gradual
forward rotation of the drum 108 caused by the asymmetric swing
motion of the washing machine according to the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 5, if the swing mode begins, first, the drum 108
rotates reverse by the specified angle to set an initial position
(as indicated by an arrow 0 shown in FIG. 5). Then, starting from
the initial position, the drum 108 alternately rotates in the
forward direction (as indicated by arrows 1, 3 and 5) and in the
reverse direction (as indicated by arrows 2 and 4), carrying out
the asymmetric swing motion. In this case, as a result of the
difference between the forward and reverse rotation angles, the
drum 108 gradually rotates in the forward direction CCW by the
increment of 15.degree. as explained in conjunction with FIGS. 4A
and 4B. That is, the drum 108 simultaneously carries out both the
swing motion and the gradual forward rotation.
[0032] FIG. 6 is a graph explaining the concept of the gradual
forward rotation of the drum 108 shown in FIG. 5. In the graph, an
x-axis represents time, and an y-axis represents a velocity
command. As shown in FIG. 6, after the drum 108 is initialized in
position as it rotates reverse (as indicated by reference numeral
0), it alternately carries out forward rotations (as indicated by
reference numerals 1, 3 and 5) and reverse rotations (as indicated
by reference numerals 2 and 4). Although velocity commands
(amplitudes) of the forward and reverse rotations are the same as
each other, a forward rotation angle is larger than a reverse
rotation angle since a forward rotation time is longer than a
reverse rotation time. Therefore, it will be appreciated that, even
though the drum 108 continuously swings in the swing mode, the
average of such forward and reverse rotations, indicated by a
dashed-line 602, is biased in the forward direction CCW. This means
that the drum 108 rotates forward on the average across the entire
swing mode.
[0033] FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of a
washing machine according to the present embodiment. As shown in
FIG. 7, first, the desired wash mode is set (operation 702). In
this case, it is determined whether the set wash mode, selected by
the user, is the swing mode suitable to protect the laundry from
excessive shock or friction generated upon rotation of the drum, or
not (operation 704). If not, the corresponding wash mode is carried
out (operation 706).
[0034] If the swing mode is selected, in an initialized state
wherein the drum rotates reverse by the specified angle, the drum
is controlled in a rotational direction so that it alternately
rotates forward and reverse by the specified forward and reverse
rotation angles (operation 708). After the lapse of a specified
time corresponding to the swing mode, the swing mode ends
(operation 710).
[0035] The above-described embodiment of present invention provides
a drum type washing machine which can minimize damage to laundry,
specifically, silk or wool laundry vulnerable by shock or friction
caused during washing, as a result of carrying out asymmetric swing
motion of a drum thereof. Further, according to the above-described
embodiment of the present invention, since the drum simultaneously
swings and gradually rotates forward, laundry can be easily
overturned even by rotation of the drum across a small angle,
resulting in a reduction of douse or wash time and enabling
effective washing of the laundry. The gradual forward rotation,
furthermore, enables continuous overturn of the laundry.
[0036] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been
shown and described, the present invention is not limited to the
described embodiment. Instead, it would be appreciated by those
skilled in the art that changes may be made to the embodiment
without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention,
the scope of which is defined by the claims and their
equivalents.
* * * * *