Back to results
US 6,585,781 B1Granted
Laundry washing machine with steam drying
AssigneeAktiebolaget Electrolux
InventorRutger Roseen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
AssigneeAktiebolaget Electrolux
InventorRutger Roseen
Estimating the term…
A combined machine for washing and drying textiles comprises a wash liquor tub, which contains an inner drum rotatably provided and supporting the textiles during the washing and drying processes and having a volume adapted to requirements relating to the wash process, water supply means for supplying water into the tub, means for the supply of detergents, water draining means for draining washing and rinsing liquid from the tub, and means for driving a moisture absorbing gaseous medium in a closed loop past the textiles in the inner drum. The moisture absorbing gaseous medium, which consists of dry superheated steam, and compressor means are provided to compress part of the steam diverted from the closed loop and lead it to heat exchanger means provided to condense the compressed steam and return the heat released during the condensing process to the steam in the closed loop.
A combined machine for washing and drying textiles, comprising a wash liquor tub (10) which contains an inner drum (12) rotatably provided and supporting the textiles during the washing and drying processes and having a volume adapted to requirements relating to the wash process, water supply means (20) for supplying water into the tub (10), water draining means (28,30,32) for draining washing and rinsing liquid from the tub (10), and means (44) for driving a moisture absorbing gaseous medium in a closed loop (34) past the textiles in the inner drum (12), characterized in that the moisture absorbing gaseous medium consists of dry superheated steam, diverting means (48) being provided to divert part of the steam flowing in the closed loop (34), compressor means (50) being provided to compress the steam diverted from the closed loop (34), and heat exchanger means (54) provided to condense the compressed steam and return the heat released during the condensing process to the steam in the closed loop (34).
Method for washing and drying textiles in a treatment chamber (12), wherein the textiles are first treated in a conventional water washing process, dewatered by means of spin-drying and then dried by means of dry superheated steam circulated in a closed loop (34) past the textiles, characterized in that part of the steam in the circulation loop (34) is diverted and heated by being compressed to a temperature exceeding 100° C., the steam thus superheated being led to a heat exchanger (54) to be condensed, said heat exchanger (54) being adapted to transfer the heat released during the condensing process to the steam in the circulation loop (34) for heating of the same.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.