WO2017137323A1

WO2017137323A1 - A laundry washing and drying machine comprising an air-cooled condenser

Info

Publication number: WO2017137323A1
Application number: PCT/EP2017/052389
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mutlu IPEK; Vasi Kadir Ertis; Yavuz Sahin; Fatih KASAP; Nihat Kandemir
Original assignee: Arcelik AS
Current assignee: Arcelik AS
Priority date: 2016-02-08
Filing date: 2017-02-03
Publication date: 2017-08-17
Anticipated expiration: 2018-08-08

Abstract

The present invention relates to a laundry washing and drying machine (1) comprising a drum (2) wherein the laundry is placed; an air circulation duct (3) wherein the process air (PA) circulation, providing the drying of the laundry, is performed in the drying process after the washing process; a fan (4) that provides the circulation of the process air (PA); an air-cooled condenser (5) that condenses the process air (PA); an external air duct (6) that enables the condenser (5) to be cooled by delivering the cooling air (CA) sucked from the outer environment to the condenser (5), and a valve (7) connected to the water mains (S).

Description

A LAUNDRY WASHING AND DRYING MACHINE COMPRISING AN AIR-COOLED CONDENSER

The present invention relates to a laundry washing and drying machine comprising an air-cooled condenser.

In laundry washing and drying machines, the cleaning agents like the detergent, softener etc. required for the washing process are placed into a dispenser. The water received from the mains is passed through the dispenser and mixed with detergent, and the mixed wash water is transferred to the tub. In the drying process realized after the washing process, air-cooled condensers that realize the condensation process by using the outer environment air are widely used. The humid air that comes from over the laundry and passes through the process air duct is condensed in the condenser cooled by means of the outside environment air, thus the air that is dried by being dehumidified is delivered again onto the laundry through the process air duct. The condensation process performed in the air-cooled condenser is dependent on the temperature of the outer environment air. The temperature of the outer environment should be below a certain value so that sufficient condensation is obtained in the condenser and the laundry is dried. When the temperature of the outer environment increases, the amount of moisture condensed in the condenser decreases and the drying process cannot be performed efficiently enough.

In the state of the International Patent Application No. WO2010118935, a washer-dryer is disclosed, wherein the temperature of the outer environment is measured by means of a temperature sensor on the cooling channel of the condenser and the speed of the cooling fan of the condenser is changed when the temperature of the outer environment exceeds a certain value.

In the state of the art European Patent Application No. EP2169107, a spraying device is described, enabling the condenser disposed in a dryer to be washed and thus cleansed of fiber and lints at the end of the drying process.

The aim of the present invention is the realization of a laundry washing and drying machine comprising an air-cooled condenser with improved condensation efficiency.

The laundry washing and drying machine realized in order to attain the aim of the present invention, explicated in the first claim and the respective claims thereof, comprises a drum wherein the laundry is placed; an air circulation duct wherein the process air circulation, providing the drying of the laundry, is performed in the drying process after the washing process; a fan that provides the circulation of the process air; an air-cooled condenser that condenses the process air; an external air duct that enables the condenser to be cooled by delivering the cooling air sucked from the outer environment to the condenser, and a valve connected to the water mains.

The laundry washing and drying machine of the present invention comprises a water spraying device

- that is disposed on the air circulation duct and

with one end extending to the valve and the other end to the air circulation duct.

The cooling air passes through the cooling ducts in the condenser and the process air passes through the drying ducts. The cooling channels decreases the temperature of the humid process air passing through the drying ducts with which the cooling ducts have a heat-transfer relation and condenses the process air, and the dry process air is sent onto the laundry in the drum. The temperature of the outer environment changes depending on the seasons and/or the temperature of the environment wherein the laundry washing and drying machine is operated. When the temperature of the outer environment, for example exceeds 30-35 °C, the cooling air, that draws heat from the humid process air, heats up and cannot provide a sufficient temperature difference for an efficient condensation. When the valve connected to the water mains is opened, the mains water is delivered from the water mains to the water spraying device. The water spraying device sprays the water taken from the water mains to the air circulation duct and enables the process air passing through the air circulation duct to be cooled by means of water before being delivered to the condenser. Thus, the process air is cooled by both the air-cooled condenser and the water.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device comprises at least one pipe line that surrounds the inner surface of the air circulation duct and that has more than one hole thereon. The water delivered from the valve to the water spraying device contacts the process air taken into the air circulation duct by means of the holes on the pipe line, thus enabling the process air to be cooled. Moreover, by means of the surface of the pipe line cooled by means of the cold mains water therein, the process air, that moves in the air circulation duct by sweeping the surfaces of the pipe line, is enabled to be cooled.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device comprises the holes arranged on the surface of the pipe line, facing the air circulation duct. The pipe line surrounds the inner surfaces of the air circulation duct, thus the water sent through the holes is enabled to completely sweep the inner walls of the air circulation duct. The pipe line, that is disposed into the preferably rectangular air circulation duct, comprises at least one hole facing each surface of the air circulation duct.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the pipe line comprises an upper pipe line and a lower pipe line that are connected to each other by means of a connection pipe. The water, that is sprayed through the holes arranged on the upper pipe line and the lower pipe line that are positioned in the air circulation duct so that there is a distance predetermined by the producer therebetween, is enabled to be dispersed over a larger area on the air circulation duct. The water, that is delivered from the upper pipe line to the air circulation duct, heats up while moving towards the lower pipe line on the walls of the air circulation duct, thus decreasing the cooling performance. By means of the lower pipe line positioned below the upper pipe line, the cold water is once more sent to the wall of the air circulation duct, thus the area of the surface cooled along the air circulation duct is increased. Moreover, by means of the upper pipe line and the lower pipe line, the length of the pipe line inside the air circulation duct is increased, thus the cooling performance is improved by increasing the area of the cold surface that the process air contacts.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spring device comprises the lower pipe line that has a larger number of holes than the upper pipe line. By changing the number of holes on the upper pipe line, the amount of water delivered from the upper pipe line to the lower pipe line by means of the connection line is controlled. By decreasing the number of holes on the upper pipe line, the mains water taken from the valve is prevented from being completely discharged through the holes on the upper pipe line and some of the water is enabled to be delivered to the lower pipe line.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device comprises a nozzle that is disposed on the upper pipe line and that extends from the upper pipe line to the lower pipe line. By means of the nozzle, the water taken from the upper pipe line is sprayed to the air circulation duct so as to disperse over the entire inner volume remaining between the walls of the air circulation duct. Thus, the entire process air is enabled to be moved through the air circulation duct in direct contact with the water.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the laundry washing and drying machine comprises a control unit that opens the valve during the drying step so as to enable the water spraying device to spray water to the air circulation duct. The control unit keeps the valve open during the drying step, thus providing the delivery of water from the water mains to the water spraying device. Thus, the air circulation duct is enabled to be efficiently cooled during the drying step.

By means of the present invention, by operating the water spraying device supplied with water from the water mains, the air-cooled condenser is also cooled with water, thus improving the condensation efficiency of the condenser.

The laundry washing and drying machine realized in order to attain the aim of the present invention is illustrated in the attached figures, where:

Figure 1 – is the schematic view of a laundry washing and drying machine.

Figure 2 - is the perspective view of the water spraying device in an embodiment of the present invention.

The elements in the figures are numbered as follows:

Laundry washing and drying machine
Drum
Air circulation duct
Fan
Condenser
External air duct
Valve
Water spraying device
Pipe line
Hole
Connection pipe
Upper pipe line
Lower pipe line
Nozzle
Control unit

The laundry washing and drying machine (1) comprises a drum (2) wherein the laundry is placed; an air circulation duct (3) wherein the process air (PA) circulation, providing the drying of the laundry, is performed in the drying process after the washing process; a fan (4) that provides the circulation of the process air (PA); an air-cooled condenser (5) that condenses the process air (PA); an external air duct (6) that enables the condenser (5) to be cooled by delivering the cooling air (CA) sucked from the outer environment to the condenser (5), and a valve (7) connected to the water mains (S) (Figure 1).

The laundry washing and drying machine (1) of the present invention comprises a water spraying device (8)

that is disposed on the air circulation duct (3) and
with one end extending to the valve (7) and the other end to the air circulation duct (3).

The condenser (5) condenser and dehumidifies the process air (PA). When the valve (7) connected to the water mains (S) is opened, the water spraying device (8), that is disposed into the air circulation duct (3) so as to be between the drum (2) and the condenser (5), sprays the mains water to the air circulation duct (3). Thus, before entering the condenser (5), the hot process air (PA) leaving the drum (2) is cooled by means of the mains water sprayed to the air circulation duct (3), thus the condensation performance of the condenser (5) is improved (Figure 1 and Figure 2).

In an embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device (8) comprises at least one pipe line (9) that surrounds the inner surface of the air circulation duct (3) and that has more than one hole (10) thereon. When the pipe line (9), that has preferably the same form as the air circulation duct (3), is disposed into the air circulation duct (3), the holes (10) arranged on the pipe line (9) face the inner surface of the air circulation duct (3). Thus, the water, that is sprayed to the air circulation duct (3) through the holes (10) from the pipe line (9), is enabled to efficiently wet the walls of the air circulation duct (3) and the cooling performance of the water spraying device (8) is improved.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spring device (8) comprises the holes (10) arranged on the surface of the pipe line (9), facing the air circulation duct (3). The water coming through the holes (10) are sprayed to the air circulation duct (3) and thus the walls of the air circulation duct (3) are enabled to be cooled. Consequently, the process air (PA) taken into the air circulation duct (3) is cooled by contacting the cold walls of the air circulation duct (3). Thus, the temperature difference between the process air (PA) and the cooling air (CA) is increased, thereby improving the condensation efficiency of the condenser (5).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the pipe line (9) comprises an upper pipe line (12) and a lower pipe line (13) that are connected to each other by means of a connection pipe (11). In this embodiment, on both the upper pipe line (12) and the lower pipe line (13) there are the holes (10) facing the walls of the air circulation duct (3). The mains water taken from the valve (7) is first delivered to the upper pipe line (12). Some of the water taken into the upper pipe line (12) is sprayed to the walls of the air circulation duct (3) through the holes (10) while some is delivered to the lower pipe line (13) by passing through the connection pipe (11). All of the water delivered to the lower pipe line (13) is sprayed to the walls of the air circulation duct (3) through the holes (10). By spraying water to the walls of the air circulation duct (3) both by means of the upper pipe line (12) and the lower pipe line (13), the surface area being cooled is increased, thus the process air (PA) in contact with the walls of the air circulation duct (3) is enabled to be efficiently cooled.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device (8) comprises the lower pipe line (13) that has a larger number of holes (10) than the upper pipe line (12). By decreasing the number of holes (10) on the upper pipe line (12), the mains water taken from the valve (7) is prevented from completely passing through the holes (10) to be sent to the air circulation duct (3). Thus, some of the mains water taken from the valve (7) passes through the holes (10) to be delivered to the air circulation duct (3) while some is delivered to the lower pipe line (13) by passing through the connection pipe (11).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the water spraying device (8) comprises a nozzle (14) that is disposed on the upper pipe line (12) and that extends from the upper pipe line (12) to the lower pipe line (13). The mains water passing through the nozzle (14) is sprayed in the horizontal direction. Thus, the walls of the air circulation duct (3) are efficiently circumferentially swept with water.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the laundry washing and drying machine (1) comprises a control unit (15) that opens the valve (7) during the drying step so as to enable the water spraying device (8) to spray water to the air circulation duct (3). The control unit (15) opens the valve (7) at the beginning of the drying step and provides the delivery of the mains water to the water spraying device (8). Thus, the process air (PA) is delivered to the air circulation duct (3) in synchronization with the delivery of water from the water spraying device (8) to the air circulation duct (3), and the process air (PA) is enable to be efficiently cooled during the drying process.

In the laundry washing and drying machine (1), with the activation of the water spraying device (8), the air-cooled condenser (5) becomes air- and water-cooled, thus improving the condensation efficiency of the condenser (5).

Claims

A laundry washing and drying machine (1) comprising a drum (2) wherein the laundry is placed; an air circulation duct (3) wherein the process air (PA) circulation, providing the drying of the laundry, is performed in the drying process after the washing process; a fan (4) that provides the circulation of the process air (PA); an air-cooled condenser (5) that condenses the process air (PA); an external air duct (6) that enables the condenser (5) to be cooled by delivering the cooling air (CA) sucked from the outer environment to the condenser (5), and a valve (7) connected to the water mains (S), characterized by a water spraying device (8)

- that is disposed on the air circulation duct (3) and

- with one end extending to the valve (7) and the other end to the air circulation duct (3).
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in Claim 1, characterized by the water spraying device (8) comprising at least one pipe line (9) that surrounds the inner surface of the air circulation duct (3) and that has more than one hole (10) thereon.
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in Claim 2, characterized by the holes (10) that are arranged on the surface of the pipe line (9) facing the air circulation duct (3).
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in any one of the Claims 2 or 3, characterized by the pipe line (9) comprising an upper pipe line (12) and a lower pipe line (13) that are connected to each other by means of a connection pipe (11).
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in Claim 4, characterized by the lower pipe line (13) that has a larger number of holes (10) than the upper pipe line (12).
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in any one of the Claims 4 or 5, characterized by a nozzle (14) that is disposed on the upper pipe line (12) and that extends from the upper pipe line (12) to the lower pipe line (13).
A laundry washing and drying machine (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by a control unit (15) that opens the valve (7) during the drying step so as to enable the water spraying device (8) to spray water to the air circulation duct (3).