KR101342750B1 - Washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a washing machine that can be inexpensively maintained while maintaining high accuracy of a yoke, which is a constituent member of a damper using magnetic viscous fluid as a working fluid.
The rod 23 and the two up and down yokes 45 and 36 are caused by the magnetic field generated by the coil 43 accommodated in the cylinder 22 of the damper 21 damping vibration of the tank accommodating the drum (rotary tank). By increasing the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 by applying a magnetic force to the magnetic viscous fluid 55 between the), the frictional resistance to the reciprocating motion of the rod 23 is increased to increase the damping force, the vibration of the tank The upper and lower yokes 45 and 36 for inducing the magnetic field generated by the coil 43 were formed by sintering the magnetic metal powder.

Description

Washing machine {WASHING MACHINE}

The present invention relates to a washing machine.

Conventionally, in a washing machine, especially a drum type washing machine, a water tank exists inside an outer box, a drum that is a rotating tank is accommodated in the inside of the water tank, and the drum is driven to rotate by a motor outside the water tank. In addition, the water tank is elastically supported by suspension on the bottom plate of the outer box, and the suspension is provided with a damper for damping the vibration of the water tank due to the rotational vibration of the drum.

In this type of damper, invariant damping force is generally used. Recently, studies have been made using a variable damping force, in which magnetic viscous fluid (MR fluid) is used for the working fluid.

The magnetic viscous fluid is a dispersion of ferromagnetic particles such as iron and carbonyl iron in oil, for example, and when the magnetic force is applied, the ferromagnetic particles form chain clusters to increase the viscosity.

For example, in the rotational speed range where the water tank resonance occurs during dewatering stroke start, increase the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid to increase the damping force of the damper, avoid the occurrence of water tank resonance, and improve the starting performance of the dewatering rotation. In the normal (high speed rotation) region of the dehydration stroke, the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid is reduced, the damping force is reduced, and the vibration of the tank is avoided from being transmitted to the outer box.

Moreover, it is possible to avoid that the vibration is transmitted to the bottom surface of the house which installed the washing machine (for example, refer patent document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2010-184068

In the damper using the magnetic viscous fluid as the working fluid described in Patent Document 1, a coil and a cylindrical yoke for inducing a magnetic field generated by the coil are provided inside the cylinder.

In addition, the rod penetrates the hollow part of the coil and the yoke, and the rod penetrates and is inserted into the cylinder with a small gap between the rod, the coil, and the yoke, and is magnetically disposed at the gap between the rod, the coil, and the yoke. The viscous fluid is filled, and the magnetic force is applied to the magnetic viscous fluid through the yoke by the magnetic field generated by the coil.

However, in the damper, the yoke is manufactured by general steel forging, that is, made of forging iron as a material. However, since forging has a problem in precision and requires post-processing such as cutting to increase the precision and costs thereof, the yoke made of forging iron has a disadvantage of being expensive.

Therefore, in the washing machine having a damper for damping the vibration of the water tank accommodating the rotating tank, there is provided a washing machine that can be manufactured at low cost while maintaining high accuracy of the yoke, which is a constituent member of the damper using magnetic viscous fluid as the working fluid. do.

In the washing machine of this embodiment, the damper which damps the vibration of the water tank which accommodates a rotating tank is provided, The said damper is a cylinder, the coil accommodated in the inside of the cylinder, and the coil accommodated in the said cylinder, and the said coil generate | occur | produces. A cylindrical yoke for inducing a magnetic field, a rod inserted into the cylinder penetrating a small gap between the yoke, and a magnetic viscous fluid filled in the gap between the rod and the yoke. The yoke is formed by sintering magnetic metal powder.

Thereby, the washing machine which can manufacture at low cost can be provided, maintaining the precision of the yoke which is a structural member of the damper which uses a magnetic viscous fluid as a working fluid.

1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a suspension unit including a damper, showing a first embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a longitudinal side view showing a part of the entire washing machine broken;
3 is a partially enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the damper;
4 is a perspective view of a yoke unit;
5 is a partially enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the yoke, and
Fig. 6 is a diagram corresponding to Fig. 5 showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

(First Embodiment)

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, 1st Embodiment of this invention is described with reference to FIGS.

First, the whole structure of the drum type washing machine is shown in FIG. 2, and the outer box 1 is made into the outer shell. The outer box 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and forms a laundry inlet 2 at a substantially center portion of the front face portion (right side in FIG. 2), and opens and closes the door 3 for opening and closing the laundry inlet 2. It is installed in the outer box (1).

Moreover, the operation panel 4 is provided in the upper part of the front surface part of the outer box 1, and the control device 5 for operation control is provided in the back surface side (in the outer box 1).

The water tank 6 is installed inside the outer box 1. The water tank 6 has a horizontal axis cylindrical shape in the axial direction of the front and rear (right in FIG. 2), and the left and right pairs of the water tank 6 on the bottom plate portion 1a in the outer box 1 (only one shown) It is elastically supported in the inclined state so that it may move forward by the suspension 7 of a. Details of the suspension 7 will be described later.

The motor 8 is attached to the back part of the water tank 6. The motor 8 is made of, for example, a brushless motor of direct current, and is of the outer rotor type, and has a rotating shaft (not shown) attached to the center of the rotor 8a through the bearing housing 9 of the water tank 6. It is inserted through the inside.

The drum 10 is provided inside the water tank 6. The drum 10 also has a horizontal cylindrical shape whose axial direction is forward and backward, and is inclined to rise forward concentrically with the water tank 6 by attaching it to the distal end of the rotation shaft of the motor 8 at the center of the rear part. I support it.

The drum 10 is configured to be rotated by the motor 8, so that the drum 10 is a rotating tub and the motor 8 is configured to function as a rotating tub drive for rotating the drum 10.

In the circumferential side part (body part) of the drum 10, many small holes 11 are formed throughout. In addition, both the drum 10 and the water tank 6 have openings 12 and 13 in the front face portion, and among them, an annular bellows between the opening 13 of the water tank 6 and the laundry entrance 2 is formed. 14). As a result, the laundry inlet / outlet 2 is connected to the inside of the drum 10 through the bellows 14, the opening 13 of the water tub 6, and the opening 12 of the drum 10.

The drain hose 16 is connected to the rear part of the bottom part which is the lowest part of the water tank 6 via the drain valve 15. In addition, a drying unit 17 is provided above and forward from the distribution of the water tank 6.

The drying unit 17 includes a dehumidifier 18, a blower 19, and a heater 20, and circulates by inhaling and dehumidifying the air in the drum 10, and then heating and returning the drum 10 back to the drum 10. The laundry is dried by carrying out.

Here, the details of the suspension 7 will be described. The suspension 7 has a damper 21, which has a cylinder 22 made of magnetic material as a main member and a rod 23 made of magnetic material as shown in FIG. 1. Doing.

Among them, the cylinder 22 has a cylindrical shape and includes an attachment portion 24 at the lower end thereof, and the attachment portion 24 is provided with the bottom plate portion 1a of the outer box 1 as shown in FIG. 2. Is mainly attached to the plate 25, the cushions 26 and 27, and the nut 28.

On the other hand, the rod 23 has a circular rod shape, and the upper end portion of the rod 23 is mainly below the left and right sides of the water tank 6, and the attachment plate 29 and the cushions 30 and 31 in the middle portion in the front-rear direction. ) And nuts 32 are attached.

On the inner periphery of the intermediate part in the up-down direction of the cylinder 22, as shown in FIG. 1, the annular convex part 33 is formed by the rolling caulking from the outside, and the protrusion part 34 in one part directly above it is shown. To form.

On the other hand, the washer 35 is inserted in the lower end part of the rod 23, and the short cylindrical lower yoke 36 is inserted just above it. The washer 35 is basically disk-shaped and forms a cutout 37 as a recess corresponding to the protrusion 34 of the cylinder 22 on one portion of the outer peripheral portion of the washer 35.

One portion of the outer circumferential portion of the lower yoke 36 is provided with a nodule 38 that engages with the protrusion 34 of the cylinder 22.

In addition, although not shown between these washers 35 and the lower yoke 36, for example, a hole (fitting portion) in which a projection (hooking portion) formed in the washer 35 is formed in the lower yoke 36. There is a positioning means for matching the positions of the cutout portion 37 and the nodule portion 38 by engaging with.

The lower yoke 36 has a recess 39 formed below the inner circumferential portion, and the lower oil seal 40 and the lower bearing 41 are housed in the recess 39. Further, an annular groove 42 is formed in the upper outer peripheral portion of the lower yoke 36.

The bobbin 44 which wound the coil 43 is inserted in the upper part of the lower yoke 36 of the rod 23. In addition, the upper yoke 45 is inserted into the portion immediately above the bobbin 44 of the rod 23. The upper yoke 45 has a short cylindrical shape symmetrically up and down with the lower yoke 36 and has a recess 46 on the upper side of the inner circumference, and the upper oil seal 47 and the upper portion on the recess 46. It is configured to receive the bearing 48. Further, an annular groove 49 is formed in the lower outer peripheral portion of the upper yoke 45.

The mold resin 50 is treated and solidified from the outer circumference of the coil 43 to the upper and lower portions of the bobbin 44 and the grooves 49 of the upper yoke 45 and the grooves 42 of the lower yoke 36. Those coils 43, the bobbin 44, the upper yoke 45, and the lower yoke 36 are integrated with the mold resin 50 to form the magnetic field unit 51.

&Quot; 52 " represents a lead wire for feeding the coil 43 of the magnetic field unit 51, and " 53 " represents a bush protecting the lead portion of the lead wire 52.

In this case, a minute gap 54 exists between the bobbin 44 and the upper yoke 45, the lower yoke 36, and the rod 23, as shown in FIG. 3 (FIG. 3 shows the upper yoke). (45) side as a representative), so that the rod 23 penetrates the upper yoke 45 and the lower yoke 36 with a small gap 54 therebetween, and the gap 54 Is filled with a magnetic viscous fluid (MR fluid) 55. 3 also shows an O-ring 56 interposed between the bobbin 44 and the upper yoke 45.

As described above, the magnetic viscous fluid 55 is formed by dispersing ferromagnetic particles such as iron and carbonyl iron in oil, and when the magnetic force is applied, the ferromagnetic particles form chain clusters to increase the viscosity.

After the above configuration, the magnetic field unit 51 is inserted together with the rod 23 until the washer 35 abuts on the convex portion 33 of the cylinder 22 from above. As shown in FIG. 1, the magnetic field unit 51 including the coil 43 and the upper and lower yokes 45 and 36 and the lower portion of the rod 23 are positioned and fixed inside the cylinder 22. have.

Further, at this time, the cut portion 37 of the washer 35 positioned on the lower yoke 36 by the positioning means passes through the protrusion 34 of the cylinder 22, and passes through the cutout portion 37 of the lower yoke 36. (38) is fitted to the protruding portion 34, and the washer 35 abuts against the convex portion 33 of the cylinder 32 to prevent the magnetic field unit 51 from falling off.

In addition, a U-shaped nodule 57 is formed in advance in one portion of the upper end of the cylinder 22, and the bush 53 (leaving portion of the lead wire 52) is fitted thereon, and is described above. One positioning means is for fitting and fitting the bush 53 portion of the magnetic field unit 51 to the nodule 57.

Thereafter, the upper oil seal 47 and the upper bearing portion 48 are accommodated in the recess 46 of the upper yoke 45. Among these, the upper oil seal 47 prevents the leakage of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 together with the lower oil seal 40, and the upper bearing 48 together with the lower bearing 41 loads the rod 23. I support it.

Moreover, the cap 58 is put on the upper end of the cylinder 22, and the outer peripheral part is caulked to prevent the magnetic field unit 51 from being pulled out.

The damper 21 is constituted as described above, and the spring sheet 59 is installed on the upper portion of the rod 23 located above the cylinder 22 of the damper 21, and the spring sheet 59 and The suspension 7 is comprised between the cap 58 and the spring 60 which consists of a compression coil spring surrounding the rod 23 is comprised.

The water tank 6 is elastically mounted on the bottom plate portion 1a of the outer box 1 by attachment of the suspension 7 to the bottom plate portion 1a of the outer box 1 and attachment to the water tank 6. I'm supporting it.

4 illustrates the shapes of the two yokes 45 and 36 as the upper yoke 45. As is apparent from FIG. 4, the two yokes 45, 36 are generally short cylindrical in shape with recesses 46, 39, with the recesses 46, 39 being oil seals 47, 40 and bearings. A multistage shape having end portions 61, 62, and 63 for accommodating the 48 and 41 in positions is formed.

In addition, the inner circumferential portion of the yoke 45 and 36 is provided with a groove 64 for injecting the magnetic viscous fluid 55 into the gap 54 between the bobbin 44 and the rod 23. 65, the grooves 49 and 42 are provided, and also the nodular part 66 for positioning the bobbin 44 is made into a complicated shape.

The yokes 45 and 36 are formed by sintering magnetic metal powder in the present embodiment. In this case, the magnetic metal powder is iron, and among them, pure iron powder having a purity of 99% or more (for example, JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) classification: SMF1020), press-molding the pure iron powder in the above shape, and It is produced by plastic solidification at a temperature of about 1500 [deg.] C.

Fig. 5 shows the yokes 45 and 36 thus manufactured in partial cross section. As can be seen in FIG. 5, the yoke 45, 36 has many micropores 67 from the surface to the inside. And the thin film 68 is further formed in the surface of the yoke 45 and 36 after sintering manufacture.

The thin film 68 is for preventing the penetration of the oil component of the magnetic viscous fluid 55. The thin film 68 is a plating (electric plating), and attaches a film of nickel having magnetic properties to a thickness of about 1 to 10 [μm], for example. To form.

Next, the effect of the washing machine of the said structure is demonstrated.

In the washing machine of the said structure, when the drum 10 is rotated at the time of washing | cleaning, dehydration, or drying, the water tank 6 vibrates up and down mainly by the rotation of the drum 10. FIG.

In response to the vertical vibration of the water tank 6, in the suspension 7, the rod 58 of the damper 21 attached to the water tank 6 expands and contracts the spring 60 and the cap 58 and the upper bearing 48. The upper oil seal 47, the bobbin 44, the lower yoke 36, the lower oil seal 40, the lower bearing 41, and the washer 35 in the cylinder 22 up and down direction (axial direction). Reciprocate with).

In this way, when the rod 23 reciprocates in the vertical direction past each of the components (magnetic field unit 51), the magnets filled in the gap 54 between the rod 23 and the two yoke (45, 36) The viscous fluid 55 imparts a damping force to the suspension 7 with frictional resistance due to its viscosity, and attenuates the amplitude of the water tank 6.

However, at this time, among them, when the water tank 6 resonates, current is energized (direct current) to the coil 43 of the damper 21. Then, a magnetic field is generated by the coil 43, the magnetic force is applied to the magnetic viscous fluid 55, the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 is increased.

Specifically, by energizing the coil 43, the rod 23-magnetic viscous fluid 55-upper yoke 45-cylinder 22-lower yoke 36-magnetic viscous fluid 55-rod 23 Magnetic circuit is generated and magnetic force is applied to the magnetic viscous fluid 55 by passing through the magnetic viscous fluid 55.

As a result, the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 between the two upper and lower yokes 45 and 36 and the rod 23 is increased, and the frictional resistance to the reciprocating motion of the rod 23 is increased.

In this way, when the cylinder 22 vibrates in the up-down direction along each of the above components, the damping force is increased by increasing the frictional resistance when the water tank 6 resonates. As a result, vibration may be less likely to occur in the water tank 6.

In addition, in the high speed rotation region after the rotation speed region where resonance of the water tank 6 occurs, the damping force of the damper 21 is reduced by not energizing the coil 43 or by reducing the energization thereof, whereby the water tank 6 It is possible to avoid the vibration of the transmission to the outer box (1), and also to avoid the transmission of the vibration to the bottom surface of the house in which the washing machine is installed.

Thus, in the washing machine of the said structure, the damper 21 which damps the vibration of the water tank 6 which accommodates the drum 10 which is a rotating tank is loaded by the magnetic field which the coil 43 accommodated in the cylinder 22 generate | occur | produces. By applying a magnetic force to the magnetic viscous fluid 55 between the 23 and the two upper and lower yokes 45 and 36 to increase the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid 55, the frictional resistance to the reciprocating motion of the rod 23 is increased. It is possible to increase the damping force by increasing the damping force, making it difficult to generate vibrations in the water tank 6, and by sintering the magnetic metal powder, the upper and lower yokes 45 and 36 which induce a magnetic field generated by the coil 43 are sintered. Forming.

The two yokes 45 and 36 formed by sintering the magnetic metal powder can be formed precisely in the mold structure at the time of press molding, even in the complex shape described above, and are manufactured by forging that is difficult to increase the conventional precision. Since the yoke, such as a yoke, does not require post-processing to increase the precision, and the cost required can be reduced, two yokes 45 and 36 of high precision can be obtained and manufactured at low cost.

In this case, the magnetic metal powders of the two yoke 45 and 36 materials are iron and can be manufactured at a reasonable cost.

In addition, iron, which is a material of the two yokes 45 and 36, has a purity of 99 [%] or more, and its magnetic characteristics are very high in saturation magnetic flux density and small in holding force, and thus are used for the coil 43 used for the damper 21. By applying the magnetic force to the magnetic viscous fluid 55 can be more effectively performed.

Further, on the surfaces of the two yokes 45 and 36, a thin film 68 for preventing the infiltration of the oil content of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 is formed. As a result, it is possible to prevent the infiltration of the oil content of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 from the surfaces of the two yokes 45 and 36 manufactured by sintering into the micropores 67 that are present in a large amount. The oil content of the fluid 55 can be maintained in an original amount, so that the characteristics can be maintained well without changing the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid 55.

In this case, the thin film 68 is formed by plating, so that the thin film 68 can be formed easily and inexpensively.

The thin film 68 is, for example, a nickel film, and has magnetic properties as can be seen from the point of being a ferromagnetic material, so that the magnetic properties are not deteriorated without increasing the magnetic resistance of the magnetic circuit.

The thin film 68 may be formed by an oxidation process. Oxidation treatment forms a film by, for example, contacting the two yokes 45 and 36 with high temperature water vapor, and the film formed is iron tetraoxide (Fe ₃ O ₄ ).

Even in this way, the oil content of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 from the surfaces of the two yokes 45 and 36 manufactured by sintering to the micropores 67 present in the interior can be prevented, and Since the film formed by the oxidation treatment is a ferromagnetic material and has magnetism, it does not increase the magnetic resistance of the magnetic circuit and does not deteriorate the magnetic characteristics.

(Second Embodiment)

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention, in which portions identical to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted, and only other portions will be described.

In the case of the second embodiment, instead of installing the thin film 68 of the first embodiment in the two yokes 45 and 36, the fluid 71 is filled into the fine holes 67 of the two yokes 45 and 36. have. The fluid 71 is an oil in this case and the oil is the same oil as the base oil of the magnetic viscous fluid 55, for example, the sintered products of the two yokes 45 and 36 are put in a container in which the oil is collected. By vacuuming the surroundings and defoaming, the air and the oil in the micropores 67 can be replaced to fill the micropores 67 with oil.

In this way, even when the fluid 71 is filled in the micropores 67 of the two yokes 45 and 36, the penetration of the oil component of the magnetic viscous fluid 55 into the micropores 67 can be prevented. In addition, the surfaces of the two yokes 45 and 36 can expose the magnetic metal, and thus do not increase the magnetic resistance of the magnetic circuit and do not deteriorate the magnetic characteristics.

In addition, by making the fluid 71 an oil, the hole sealing process for sealing the micropores 67 can be made inexpensive.

Also, when the oil is the same oil as the base oil with the magnetic viscous fluid 55, the oil filled in the micropores 67 is discharged to the magnetic viscous fluid 55 side and mixed with the magnetic viscous fluid 55. Even if this exists, the deterioration of the characteristic is not caused to the magnetic viscous fluid 55.

The washing machine described above is not limited to only the above embodiment, and is not particularly limited to the drum type as a whole of the washing machine. The washing machine described above can be similarly applied to a vertical washing machine having a water tank and a rotating tank in a vertical axis shape. Moreover, it is good also in the washing machine which does not have a drying function, and can change suitably and implement in the range which does not deviate from the summary.

In addition, while certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications fall within the scope and spirit of the invention and are included in the scope of the invention as defined in the claims and their equivalents.

6: water tank 10: drum (rotating tank)
21: damper 22: cylinder
23: Rod 36: Lower Yoke
43: coil 45: upper yoke
55: magnetic viscous fluid 67: micropores
68: thin film 71: fluid

Claims (10)

A washing machine comprising a damper for damping vibration of a water tank accommodating a rotating tank,
The damper
cylinder,
A coil housed inside the cylinder,
Cylindrical upper and lower yokes received inside the cylinder and disposed above and below the coil for inducing a magnetic field generated by the coil,
A rod inserted into the cylinder penetrating with a small gap between the upper and lower yokes, and
A magnetic viscous fluid filled in the gap between the rod and the upper and lower yokes,
A magnetic circuit is generated through the rod, the magnetic viscous fluid, the upper yoke, the cylinder, the lower yoke, and the magnetic viscous fluid in the order leading to the rod,
The upper and lower yoke is formed by sintering a magnetic metal powder. The method of claim 1,
Washing machine wherein the magnetic metal powder is iron. 3. The method of claim 2,
A washing machine having a purity of iron of 99% or more. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Washing machine to form a thin film on the surface of the upper and lower yoke, to prevent the penetration of the oil of the magnetic viscous fluid. 5. The method of claim 4,
The washing machine in which the said thin film is formed by plating. 5. The method of claim 4,
The washing machine in which the thin film is formed by an oxidation process. 5. The method of claim 4,
The washing machine having the thin film magnetic. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Washing machine for filling the fluid into the fine holes present in the upper and lower yoke. The method of claim 8,
The washing machine wherein the fluid is oil. The method of claim 9,
The oil washing machine is the same oil as the base oil of the magnetic viscous fluid.

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