US 6,282,928 B1Granted

Electric washer-dryer

AssigneeMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

InventorsMasami Fukumoto, Junichi Morinaka, Yasushi Takagi, Shinichi Matsuda

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Abstract

A washer-dryer having an improved efficiency of drying up; namely, the drying time is shortened and the unevenness of drying is alleviated. Furthermore, vibration during operations, especially during spin-drying, is reduced. An inner tub of approximately cylindrical shape rotating around a substantially vertical axis and receives a washing is housed in an outer tub. The inner tub is provided with freely rotatable agitating means at the bottom part for agitating the washing. A motor rotates the inner tub or the agitating means. The air to be supplied through a hot air supply channel into the inner tub is heated by heating means, which air is advanced by a drying air blower into the inner tub. Control means controls each of the washing, rinsing, spin-drying and drying processes by controlling respective operations of the motor, the heating means, the drying air blower, etc. During the drying process, a washing is agitated by the agitating means, and exposed to the air heated by the heating means and blown by the drying air blower against the washing staying within the inner tub. The washing is thus deprived of humidity and dried.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A washer-dryer comprising:

an outer tub;
an inner tub housed in said outer tub for receiving a wash load, said inner tub having an approximately cylindrical shape and being rotable around a substantially vertical axis;
agitation means provided in the inside of said inner tub and being freely rotable for agitating the wash load;
a motor for rotating said inner tub or said agitation means;
a hot air supply channel for supplying air into said inner tub;
heating means for heating the air to be supplied from said hot air supply channel into said inner tub;
a drying air blower for delivering the hot air into said inner tub via said hot air supply channel;
and
control means for controlling each respective process of washing, rinsing, spin-drying and drying, by controlling operation of said motor, said heating means, and said drying air blower, wherein, during the drying process, said agitation means agitates the wash load in said inner tub, said heating means heats the air, and said drying air blower delivers the hot air into said inner tub to dehydrate and dry the wash load;
and
wherein said hot air supply channel forms a circulation channel for circulating the hot air heated by said heating means taken from inside of said inner tub, said circulation channel causing the hot air to undergo a heat exchange procedure at at least one of a place within the inside of said outer tub and at least at a part of said circulation channel.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.