Apparatus for circulating flows of washing and rinsing liquids in a laundry washing machine

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for circulating flows of washing and rinsing liquids in a laundry washing machine of the type comprising a tank, a drum for the laundry to be washed arranged rotatably inside the tank, a plurality of nozzles for releasing the liquids into the tank and an opening in the base of the tank for the discharge of said liquids, said apparatus comprising a reservoir arranged below the base of the tank and able to hold a predetermined amount of washing or rinsing liquid, said reservoir being hydraulically connected to said nozzles, to said opening in the base of the tank and to an outlet outside the machine and being provided with a longitudinal axis which extends between two opposing end walls, a base wall, a top wall and side walls extending parallel to said longitudinal axis, first pumping elements for circulating liquids from the reservoir to the tank and vice-versa, second pumping elements for discharging liquids from the reservoir and from the machine, heating means arranged inside the reservoir and elements for filtering the liquids circulating in the reservoir.

[0002] Apparatuses of the type mentioned above are known in the art and the various component parts, in particular the recirculation and discharge pumps and the filtering elements, are usually arranged in the lower portion of the laundry washing machine, below the tank and fixed to the frame thereof set apart from one another depending on the available space. It is thus necessary for such components parts to be connected to one another and to the tank via flexible or rigid tubes, which leads to the formation of substantially extended hydraulic circuits.

[0003] According to a further known technical solution, disclosed in US-B-6,167,733, a filter case is integrally formed with a pump which is provided with an impeller for circulating the washing liquid into the upper portion of an outer tub or, in alternative, by reversing the rotation direction of the impeller, for draining the washing liquid out of the machine.

[0004] Also the disclosure of US-A-2006/0000240 shows an integral combination of a filter case and a pump case. The filter case internally defines a filter chamber and the pump case internally defines a pump chamber such that the filter chamber and the pump chamber form separate spaces sectionalised from each other.

[0005] The above described known technical solutions, although suitable to eliminate the flexible or rigid conduits for the hydraulic connection of the filter case to the pump case, they are not anyhow suitable to provide an effective solution to the problem of reducing the amount of washing and/or rinsing liquid circulating in the washing machine, in view of the energy saving, because they still imply the use of extended conduits for connecting the filter and pump combination to the tub of the machine and require that the amount of the liquid necessary to the machine functions be stored in the tub creating further energetic problem deriving from the resistance met by the drum when rotating into the liquid inside the tub.

[0006] Therefore, according to the known art, when the machine is in operation not only the amount of laundry to be washed and the machine volumes which are strictly operational during washing and rinsing, but also the volume of the tubes which form the hydraulic circuit connecting the various components must be taken into consideration when determining the amount of liquid necessary for correct functioning of the machine, this liquid normally being water with detergent during the washing stages and only water during the rinsing stages.

[0007] It follows that the amount of liquid is greater than that strictly necessary for washing a specific amount of laundry, having an adverse effect on the energy consumption for heating and circulation and thus lower overall energy efficiency of the machine in general.

[0008] The object of the present invention is to try to reduce the energy consumption of a laundry washing machine functioning with a reduced amount of liquids circulating therein during both the washing and rinsing stages.

[0009] The object is achieved with the apparatus according to claim 1 below.

[0010] The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to various exemplary and non-limiting embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

• Fig. 1 is an overall perspective schematic view of a laundry washing machine incorporating the apparatus according to the invention;
• Fig. 2 schematically shows the apparatus according to the invention arranged below the tank of a laundry washing machine;
• Fig. 3 is a plan view, partly in section, of a first embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention;
• Fig. 4 is a partial sectional view of the apparatus taken along axis X-X of the reservoir;
• Fig. 5 is a partial sectional view of the apparatus taken along line V-V of Fig. 2;
• Fig. 6 is a plan view, partly in section, of a second embodiment of the apparatus;
• Fig. 7 is a plan view, partly in section, of a third embodiment of the apparatus.

[0011] With particular reference to Figs. 1 to 5, the apparatus, in accordance with the invention, comprises a reservoir 1 for installation in the laundry washing machine below the tank 2, in which a drum 3 is conventionally arranged so as to be able to rotate and into which the laundry to be washed is placed.

[0012] The reservoir 1, designed to contain at least a substantial portion of the amount of liquid used during washing and/or rinsing operations, depending on the operative phase of the machine, is connected in a conventional manner to the tank 2 via a hydraulic feed connection illustrated by the line 4 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and via a return connection illustrated by the conduit 5.

[0013] The feed connection 4 is directed to the nozzles 4a for feeding liquid into the tank whilst the return connection 5 comes from the discharge opening 6 in the base of the tank 2.

[0014] The reservoir 1 has a longitudinal axis X-X which extends between the opposing end walls 7 and 8 and comprises a base wall 9, a top wall 10 and side walls 11 and 12 which extend parallel to the axis X-X.

[0015] In accordance with the invention, the apparatus comprises first pumping elements 13 for circulating liquid from the reservoir 1 to the tank 2 and vice-versa, and second pumping elements 14 for discharging liquid from the reservoir 1 and from the machine via an evacuation conduit indicated by the reference numeral 15 in Figs. 2 and 3.

[0016] The pumping elements 13 and 14, preferably formed by conventional centrifugal pumps, are controlled by respective electric motors indicated by reference numerals 16 and 17 in the drawings.

[0017] In accordance with the invention, in the embodiment shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, the pumps 13 and 14 are directly arranged on the walls 11 and 12 of the reservoir 1 respectively and communicate with the interior thereof via respective openings 18 and 19 formed in the walls 11 and 12 of the reservoir 1.

[0018] The central axis of symmetry 18a of the opening 18 associated with the pump 13 for recirculating liquid inside the tank 2 is perpendicular to the axis X-X of the reservoir 1 and is arranged in the region of the reservoir between said longitudinal axis X-X and the top wall 10 of the reservoir 1.

[0019] The central axis of symmetry 19a of the opening 19, associated with the pump 14 for discharging and evacuating liquid from the reservoir 1, for example at the end of washing cycles, is also perpendicular to the longitudinal axis X-X of the reservoir 1 and is arranged in a region of the reservoir in such a way that the lower edge 19b of the opening 19 is positioned between the longitudinal axis X-X of the reservoir and the base wall 9 thereof, remaining, however, higher than the heating means 20 arranged inside the reservoir 1 so as to avoid exposing said heating means at the end of a liquid discharge phase.

[0020] In particular, the distance between the axis 18a of the opening connected to the recirculation pump 13 and the axis 19a of the opening connected to the discharge pump 14 is advantageously maintained at approximately 35 mm taking into account that the overall volume of the reservoir 1 must not exceed 600 ml.

[0021] Such heating means are conventionally formed by an electrical resistance fed via the terminals 21 and 22.

[0022] In accordance with the embodiment of Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, the apparatus also comprises filtering elements, indicated as a whole with reference numeral 23, arranged in a socket 24 formed in the reservoir 1 through the wall 8 thereof and accessible from outside the profile 25 of the laundry washing machine in a conventional manner via a cover 26.

[0023] The socket 24 communicates with the interior of the reservoir 1 via the opening 27 and with the conduit 5, coming from the tank 2, via the opening 28.

[0024] The filtering elements 23, however, remain positioned in the hydraulic path coming from the tank 2 before both the recirculation pump 13 and the discharge pump 14 and mounted on the reservoir 1 with the substantial elimination of external connecting tubes.

[0025] The apparatus is completed with a pressure regulator 29 which is also mounted on the reservoir 1.

[0026] With reference to the embodiment shown in Fig. 6, in which parts similar or equivalent to those in the embodiment of Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5 have like reference numerals, it can be seen that the recirculation pump 13 and the discharge pump 14 are mounted on the reservoir 1 on the same wall, in this case on the wall 11.

[0027] The filtering elements 23 are positioned before the discharge pump 14 and therefore are active only when liquid is discharged from the reservoir 1 and not during recirculation, as is the case in the embodiment of Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5.

[0028] With reference to Fig. 7 a different positioning of the recirculation 13 and discharge 14 pumps can be seen, in accordance with which the central axis of the openings in the reservoir connected to the pumps is arranged parallel to the longitudinal axis X-X of the reservoir 1.

[0029] As a result of the description above, the apparatus according to the invention is presented as a compact module of interconnected elements with no hydraulic conduits and therefore with a substantial reduction in the volumes which are to be filled with washing and recirculation liquids, with the advantage of savings in the amount of energy consumed by the machine when it is in operation.

Claims

1. Apparatus for circulating flows of washing and rinsing liquids in a laundry washing machine of the type comprising a tank (2), a drum (3) for the laundry to be washed arranged so as to be able to rotate inside the tank, a plurality of nozzles (4a) for releasing the liquids into the tank (2) and an opening (6) in the base of the tank (2) for the discharge of said liquids, said apparatus comprising a reservoir (1) arranged beneath the base of the tank (2) and designed to contain a substantial portion of the amount of liquid used during washing or rinsing operation, said reservoir being hydraulically connected to said nozzles (4a), to said opening (6) in the base of the tank (2) and to an outlet (15) outside the machine and being provided with a longitudinal axis (X-X) which extends between two opposing end walls (7, 8), a base wall (9), a top wall (10) and side walls (11, 12) extending parallel to said longitudinal axis (X-X), first pumping elements (13) for circulating liquids from the reservoir (1) to the tank (2) and vice-versa, second pumping elements (14) for discharging liquids from the reservoir (1) and from the machine, heating means (20) arranged inside the reservoir (1) and elements (23, 24) for filtering liquids circulating in the reservoir (1), characterised in that at least said first (13) and said second (14) pumping elements are fixed directly onto one of the walls of said reservoir (1) and are connected to the interior of said reservoir (1) via respective openings (18, 19) formed in the walls of the reservoir.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that said first (13) and said second (14) pumping elements are both mounted on the same side wall (11) of the reservoir (1).

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that said first (13) pumping elements are mounted on one (11) of the walls of the reservoir (1) whilst said second pumping elements (14) are mounted on the opposing wall (12) of the reservoir (1).

4. Apparatus according to claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said openings (18, 19) each are provided with a central axis (18a, 19a) arranged perpendicular to said longitudinal axis (X-X) of the reservoir (1).

5. Apparatus according to claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said openings (18, 19) each are provided with a central axis (18a, 19a) arranged parallel to said longitudinal axis (X-X) of the reservoir (1).

6. Apparatus according to either claim 4 or claim 5, characterised in that the central axis (18a) of the opening (18) connected to the first said pumping elements (13) for circulating liquids into and from the tank (2) of the laundry washing machine, is arranged in the region of the reservoir (1) between the longitudinal axis (X-X) of the reservoir and the top wall (10) thereof.

7. Apparatus according to either claim 4 or claim 5, characterised in that the central axis (19a) of the opening (19) connected to said second pumping elements (14) for discharging liquids from the reservoir (1) and from the machine is arranged in a region of the reservoir (1) in such a way that the lower edge (19b) of the opening is positioned between the longitudinal axis (X-X) of the reservoir (1) and the base wall (9) thereof, remaining at a level higher than that where said heating means (20) are positioned.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that said elements (23, 24) for filtering liquid are positioned on said reservoir (1) and are arranged in the path of fluid issuing from the tank (2) of the machine to the reservoir (1) before said first pumping elements (13).

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, characterised in that said elements (23, 24) for filtering liquid are fixed to one (11) of said walls of the reservoir (1) which extend parallel to the longitudinal axis (X-X) thereof.

10. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that said elements (23, 24) for filtering liquid are positioned on said reservoir (1) and are fixed on one (8) of said end walls of the reservoir and are arranged in the path of fluid between said reservoir (1) and said second pumping elements (14) for discharging liquids from the reservoir and from the machine.

Ansprüche

1. Vorrichtung zum Zirkulieren von Wasch- und Spülflüssigkeitsströmen in einer Waschmaschine des Typs umfassend einen Tank (2), eine Trommel (3) für die zu waschende Wäsche, die so angeordnet ist, daß sie in dem Tank drehbar ist, eine Mehrzahl von Düsen (4a) zur Abgabe der Flüssigkeiten in dem Tank (2) und eine Öffnung (6) im Boden des Tanks (2) zum Ablassen der Flüssigkeiten, wobei die Vorrichtung ein Reservoir (1) umfaßt, das unterhalb des Bodens des Tanks (2) angeordnet ist und ausgebildet ist, um einen substantiellen Teil der Menge der Flüssigkeit zu enthalten, die während des Wasch- oder Spülbetriebs benutzt wird, wobei das Reservoir hydraulisch mit den Düsen (4a), mit der Öffnung (6) im Boden des Tanks (2) und mit einem Abfluß (15) außerhalb der Maschine verbunden ist und mit einer Längsachse (X-X), die sich zwischen zwei einander gegenüberliegenden Endwänden (7, 8) erstreckt, einer unteren Wand (9), einer oberen Wand (10) und Seitenwänden (11, 12), die sich parallel zur Längsachse (X-X) erstrecken, ersten Pumpelementen (13) zum Zirkulieren der Flüssigkeiten aus dem Reservoir (1) zum Tank (2) und umgekehrt, zweiten Pumpelementen (14) zum Ablassen der Flüssigkeiten aus dem Reservoir (1) und aus der Maschine, Heizmitteln (20), die in dem Reservoir (1) angeordnet sind, und Elementen (23, 24) zum Filtern der in dem Reservoir (1) zirkulierenden Flüssigkeit versehen ist,
dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß wenigstens die ersten (13) und zweiten (14) Pumpelemente direkt an einer der Wände des Reservoirs (1) befestigt und mit dem Inneren des Reservoirs (1) über entsprechende in den Wänden des Reservoirs gebildete Öffnungen (18, 19) verbunden sind.

2. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die ersten (13) und zweiten (14) Pumpelemente beide an der gleichen Seitenwand (11) des Reservoirs (1) montiert sind.

3. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die ersten Pumpelemente (13) an einer (11) der Wände des Reservoirs (1) montiert sind, während die zweiten Pumpelemente (14) an der gegenüberliegenden Wand (12) des Reservoirs (1) montiert sind.

4. Vorrichtung nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 3, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Öffnungen (18, 19) jeweils eine Mittelachse (18a, 19a) aufweisen, die rechtwinklig zur Längsachse (X-X) des Reservoirs (1) angeordnet ist.

5. Vorrichtung nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 3, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Öffnungen (18, 19) jeweils eine Mittelachse (18a, 19a) aufweisen, die parallel zur Längsachse (X-X) des Reservoirs (1) angeordnet ist.

6. Vorrichtung nach einem der Ansprüche 4 oder 5, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Mittelachse (18a) der Öffnung (18), die mit den ersten Pumpelementen (13) zum Zirkulieren von Flüssigkeiten in den und aus dem Tank (2) der Waschmaschine verbunden ist, in dem Bereich des Reservoirs (1) zwischen der Längsachse (X-X) des Reservoirs und dessen oberer Wand (10) angeordnet ist.

7. Vorrichtung nach einem der Ansprüche 4 oder 5, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Mittelachse (19a) der Öffnung (19), die mit den zweiten Pumpelementen (14) zum Ablassen der Flüssigkeiten aus dem Reservoir (1) und aus der Maschine verbunden ist, in einem Bereich des Reservoirs (1) derart angeordnet ist, daß die untere Kante (19b) der Öffnung zwischen der Längsachse (X-X) des Reservoirs (1) und dessen unterer Wand (9) positioniert ist und auf einer Höhe bleibt, die höher ist als diejenige, auf welcher die Heizmittel (20) angeordnet sind.

8. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Elemente (23, 24) zum Filtern von Flüssigkeit auf dem Reservoir (1) positioniert sind und in dem Weg von aus dem Tank (2) der Maschine kommender Flüssigkeit zum Reservoir (1) vor den ersten Pumpelementen (13) angeordnet sind.

9. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 8, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Elemente (23, 24) zum Filtern von Flüssigkeit an einer (11) der Wände des Reservoirs (1) befestigt sind, die sich parallel zu dessen Längsachse (X-X) erstreckt.

10. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß die Elemente (23, 24) zum Filtern von Flüssigkeit auf dem Reservoir (1) positioniert sind und an einer (8) der Endwände des Reservoirs befestigt sind und in dem Weg der Flüssigkeit zwischen dem Reservoir (1) und den zweiten Pumpelementen (14) zum Ablassen von Flüssigkeiten aus dem Reservoir und aus der Maschine angeordnet sind.

Revendications

1. Dispositif de circulation de flux de liquides de lavage et de rinçage dans une machine à laver le linge, du type comprenant une cuve (2), un tambour (3) pour le linge à laver qui est disposé de manière à pouvoir tourner à l'intérieur de la cuve, une pluralité de buses (4a) pour distribuer les liquides dans ladite cuve (2) ainsi qu'un orifice (6) se trouvant dans le fond de la cuve (2) et destiné à l'évacuation des liquides, ledit dispositif comprenant un réservoir (1) disposé au-dessous du fond de ladite cuve (2) et conçu pour contenir une partie substantielle de la quantité de liquide utilisée durant l'opération de lavage ou de rinçage, ledit réservoir étant connecté hydrauliquement auxdites buses (4a), à l'orifice (6) dans le fond de la cuve (2) et à une décharge (15) hors de la machine et étant pourvu d'un axe longitudinal (X-X) s'étendant entre deux parois d'extrémité opposées (7, 8), d'une paroi inférieure (9), d'une paroi supérieure (10) et de parois latérales (11, 12) s'étendant parallèlement à l'axe longitudinal (X-X), de premiers éléments de pompage (13) pour faire circuler les liquides depuis le réservoir (1) vers la cuve (2) et vice versa, de seconds éléments de pompage (14) pour évacuer les liquides du réservoir (1) et de la machine, de moyens de chauffage (20) disposés à l'intérieur du réservoir (1) ainsi que d'éléments (23, 24) de filtration des liquides circulant dans le réservoir (1),
caractérisé par le fait qu'au moins lesdits premiers (13) et seconds (14) éléments de pompage sont fixés directement sur l'une des parois du réservoir (1) et sont connectés au volume intérieur du réservoir (1) via des ouvertures (18, 19) respectives ménagées dans les parois du réservoir.

2. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, caractérisé par le fait que lesdits premiers (13) et seconds (14) éléments de pompage sont montés tous les deux sur la même paroi latérale (11) du réservoir (1).

3. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, caractérisé par le fait que les premiers éléments de pompage (13) sont montés sur l'une (11) des parois du réservoir (1), tandis que les seconds éléments de pompage (14) sont montés sur la paroi opposée (12) du réservoir (1).

4. Dispositif selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 3, caractérisé par le fait que lesdites ouvertures (18, 19) présentent chacune un axe central (18a, 19a) qui est disposé perpendiculairement à l'axe longitudinal (X-X) du réservoir (1).

5. Dispositif selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 3, caractérisé par le fait que lesdites ouvertures (18, 19) présentent chacune un axe central (18a, 19a) qui est disposé parallèlement à l'axe longitudinal (X-X) du réservoir (1).

6. Dispositif selon l'une quelconque des revendications 4 ou 5, caractérisé par le fait que l'axe central (18a) de l'ouverture (18) connectée aux premiers éléments de pompage (13) pour faire circuler des liquides dans et depuis la cuve (2) de la machine à laver le linge est disposé dans la zone du réservoir (1) entre l'axe longitudinal (X-X) du réservoir et la paroi supérieure (10) de celui-ci.

7. Dispositif selon l'une quelconque des revendications 4 ou 5, caractérisé par le fait que l'axe central (19a) de l'ouverture (19) connectée aux seconds éléments de pompage (14) pour évacuer les liquides du réservoir (1) et de la machine est disposé dans une zone du réservoir (1) de telle manière que l'arête inférieure (19b) de l'ouverture est positionnée entre l'axe longitudinal (X-X) du réservoir (1) et la paroi inférieure (9) de celui-ci, tout en restant à un niveau supérieur à celui où sont disposés les moyens de chauffage (20).

8. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, caractérisé par le fait que les éléments (23, 24) de filtration de liquide sont positionnés sur le réservoir (1) et sont disposés sur le chemin de fluide issu de la cuve (2) de la machine vers le réservoir (1) devant les premiers éléments de pompage (13).

9. Dispositif selon la revendication 8, caractérisé par le fait que les éléments (23, 24) de filtration de liquide sont fixés sur l'une (11) des parois du réservoir (1) qui s'étend parallèlement à l'axe longitudinal (X-X) de celui-ci.

10. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, caractérisé par le fait que les éléments (23, 24) de filtration de liquide sont positionnés sur ledit réservoir (1) et sont fixés sur l'une (8) des parois d'extrémité du réservoir et sont disposés sur le chemin de fluide entre ledit réservoir (1) et lesdits seconds éléments de pompage (14) pour évacuer des liquides du réservoir et de la machine.

Drawing