EP3294946B1 - Household electrical ironing apparatus comprising an iron and a base comprising a storing place for placing the iron - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a household ironing appliance comprising an iron comprising a heating soleplate and a base connected to the iron by a cord, the base comprising a location for placing the iron in a rest position in which the sole rests on the location, and relates more particularly to an apparatus in which the iron comprises a gripping handle disposed in cantilever relative to the sole, the gripping handle comprising a front end attached to the body and a free rear end.

It is known, from the patent application FR 2 929 298 , an ironing appliance comprising an iron fitted with a heating soleplate and a base connected to the iron by a cord, the iron comprising a gripping handle arranged cantilevered with respect to the sole. In this document, the iron can be stored in a location in the base comprising an imprint conforming to the shape of the handle.

Such a construction has the advantage of ensuring perfect retention of the iron in the location, the imprint in which the handle engages in particular preventing the iron from tipping around the rear edge of the sole when the weight of the cord pulls down on the rear end of the handle.

However, in this apparatus, the user cannot easily grasp the iron when the latter is placed on the location because only the domed upper part of the iron is accessible to the user so that the user cannot cannot grip the iron by its handle, but only by the connecting cord.

Such a location, used to store the iron at the end of the ironing session, cannot therefore be used by the user to temporarily put the iron down during an ironing session, because of the too poor ergonomics of use provided.

The user will therefore be forced to put the iron back on the ironing board with a significant risk that the latter will fall from the ironing board and deteriorate under the effect of the traction exerted by the weight of the cord on the iron. 'cantilevered rear end of the handle, such traction having a tendency to tilt the iron backwards.

Also, an object of the present invention is to remedy these drawbacks by providing an ironing appliance with improved ergonomics in which the iron, provided with its cantilever handle, can be placed stably on a location. from the base and can also be easily extracted.

To this end, the invention relates to a household ironing appliance comprising an iron comprising a heating soleplate and a base connected to the iron by a cord, the base comprising a location for placing the iron in a position rest in which the sole of the iron rests on said location, the iron comprising a gripping handle disposed cantilevered with respect to the sole, the handle comprising a front end attached to a body surmounting the sole and a free rear end, characterized in that, in the rest position, the handle comprises a bearing zone which comes to rest against the base and in that the base has a shape such that it results under the handle, between the support zone and the body, a space allowing the passage of the fingers of the hand to grip the iron by its handle.

Such a feature makes it possible to offer very good ergonomics of use by simultaneously allowing the iron to rest stable on the location, thanks to the support of the handle on the base preventing the iron from tilting towards the rear, and easy grip of the iron by its handle thanks to the free space placed under the handle which allows the user to grasp the handle with full hand.

According to another characteristic of the device according to the invention, the bearing zone is arranged at the rear end of the handle.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to optimize the stability of the iron on location and improve the ergonomics of use of the appliance by maximizing the free space available under the handle for gripping the iron.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the location has a concave shape.

Such a location has the advantage of having a hollow shape which helps guide the iron on the location to automatically ensure its correct positioning.

According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the location comprises an anterior plane receiving the sole of the iron and a posterior plane on which the support zone of the handle comes to rest when the iron occupies the rest position. , the anterior and posterior planes presenting distinct inclinations and meeting at the level of a median part of the base.

Such a location with planes arranged in a V shape has the advantage of allowing the positioning of the iron on the base with the sole slightly inclined, such an inclination corresponding to the natural inclination given to the iron by the hand of the user when he lifts the iron to move it.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the front plane comprises projecting pads making it possible to thermally insulate the base of the sole of the iron.

Such a technical characteristic also has the advantage of providing a smoother contact of the sole on the anterior plane.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the base comprises a peripheral wall which laterally borders the location at the level of the median part of the base.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to obtain a location in the form of a bowl, the peripheral wall of which helps to guide the iron towards the rest position.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the anterior plane of the location has, relative to a lower plane of the base intended to rest on a horizontal plane, an inclination of between 45 ° and 10 ° and preferably of the order of 28 °, the posterior plane having, relative to the lower plane, an inclination of between 0 ° and 15 ° and preferably of the order of 6 °.

According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the base comprises means for immobilizing the iron on the base comprising a fixed locking element which co-operates with the rear end of the handle and a movable locking element which comes to rest. on a part of the body situated opposite the handle, the locking element being movable in rotation between a folded position in which the iron can be extracted from the base and a immobilized position in which the iron can be removed. ironing is immobilized on the site.

Such locking means make it possible to immobilize the iron on the location to allow the transport of the whole of the appliance by grasping the handle of the iron.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the fixed locking element consists of a cross member under which the rear end of the handle engages.

Such a technical solution has the advantage of being simple and economical to implement while providing good ergonomics of use when placing or removing the iron on the site.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the sole comprises a flat ironing surface, the bearing zone being constituted by a flat rear surface arranged at the rear end of the handle, the rear surface of the handle forming an angle α obtuse with the plane of the ironing surface of the sole.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the angle α is between 130 ° and 160 °, and is preferably of the order of 145 °.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the inclination of the flat posterior surface is adapted so that the posterior surface lies flat on the posterior plane when the iron is in the rest position.

Such a characteristic has the advantage of optimizing the stability of the iron in the rest position.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cord contains a cable electric and / or a conduit for transporting a fluid.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the base comprises a water tank and a pump, the tank supplying water to a vaporization chamber arranged in the iron.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the base has a groove extending around the periphery of the base and allowing the cord to be wound up for storage.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cord exits the iron through an opening made on an upper surface of the handle, the opening being advantageously arranged near the rear end of the handle.

Such a feature makes it possible to have a cord which extends upwards at the exit of the handle so that the cord does not prevent the rear end of the handle from coming to rest on an ironing board when the iron is being used. ironing is placed directly on the latter.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the iron comprises, at the level of the opening, a cord guide device giving a preferential orientation to the cord at the outlet of the handle.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the cord guide device keeps the cord inclined towards the rear end of the handle so that the cord forms an angle of between 15 ° and 75 °, and preferably of the order of 45 °. °, with respect to the normal to the upper surface of the handle at the edge of the opening.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the sole has a pointed front end and a rounded rear end of greater width.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the sole has a length less than 15 cm and a width less than 10 cm.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to ensure great maneuverability for the iron during ironing work thanks to the reduced dimensions of the sole.

According to another characteristic of the invention, at least three quarters of the handle, in the direction of the length of the handle, protrude outside the sole when the handle is projected orthogonally in the plane of the sole.

According to another characteristic of the apparatus according to the invention, the iron automatically tilts around a rear edge of the sole under the effect of the traction exerted by the weight of the cord when the sole of the iron is brought. flat on a horizontal plane.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the sole comprises a heating resistance.

• les figures 1 et 2 sont des vues en perspective d'un appareil de repassage selon un mode particulier de réalisation de l'invention lorsque l'arceau de blocage est respectivement en position d'immobilisation du fer et en position repliée ;
• la figure 3 est une vue en perspective de l'appareil de la figure 1 avec le fer à repasser soulevé de la base ;
• la figure 4 est une vue en perspective du fer à repasser représenté seul ;
• la figure 5 est une vue de côté du fer à repasser de la figure 4;
• La figure 6 est une vue de côté de l'appareil de la figure 1.

The aims, aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the description given below of a particular embodiment of the invention presented by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :

• the figures 1 and 2 are perspective views of an ironing appliance according to a particular embodiment of the invention when the locking bar is respectively in the immobilized position of the iron and in the folded position;
• the figure 3 is a perspective view of the apparatus of the figure 1 with the iron lifted from the base;
• the figure 4 is a perspective view of the iron shown on its own;
• the figure 5 is a side view of the iron from the figure 4 ;
• The figure 6 is a side view of the device from the figure 1 .

Only the elements necessary for understanding the invention have been shown. To facilitate reading of the drawings, the same elements bear the same references from one figure to another.

The figures 1 to 3 and 6 show an ironing appliance conventionally comprising an iron 1 and a portable base 2 connected by a cord 3 to the iron 1, the base 2 comprising a removable reservoir 20 and containing a pump 21, schematically illustrated in dotted lines on the diagram. figure 6 , which draws water from the tank 20 to send it to the iron 1 at the through a pipe integrated in the cord 3.

In accordance with these figures, the base 2 comprises a lower plane 22 intended to rest flat on a horizontal surface, such as an ironing board and comprises, at the edge of the lower plane 22, a peripheral groove 23 allowing the cord 3 to be wound on. the perimeter of the base 2 for storage.

The base 2 also comprises an electrical cable, not visible in the figures, allowing the connection of the base 2 to the domestic electrical network, the base 2 comprising a cavity 26 opening onto the two lateral faces of the base 2 in which the cable can be inserted for storage.

In accordance with the figure 4 , the iron 1 comprises a flat sole 10 surmounted by a body 11 and comprises a gripping handle 12 comprising a front end attached to the body 11 and a free rear end projecting laterally to the body 11. The handle 12 is arranged in cantilever with respect to the sole 10 and it has a length of the order of 12 cm, the body 11 and the handle 12 being preferably made from a single piece of plastic material, obtained by molding.

The body 11 contains in a manner known per se a foundry, not visible in the figures, which is in thermal contact with the sole 10 and which comprises a heating resistance regulated by means of a non-adjustable thermostat making it possible to maintain the temperature of the sole. 10 around a setpoint temperature of around 135 ° C.

The foundry is advantageously made of aluminum and it comprises an instantaneous vaporization chamber into which water from the tank 20 is injected by the pump 21, the operation of the pump 21 being controlled by a trigger 13 placed under the front end. of the handle 12. The pump 21 and the vaporization chamber are advantageously sized to allow the production of a vapor flow rate of the order of 25 gr / min continuously when the trigger 13 is actuated.

The vapor produced by the vaporization chamber is diffused through vapor outlet holes 14 opening into two grooves arranged in a V and provided on a flat ironing surface of the sole 10. The sole 10 is advantageously made of stainless steel and has a pointed front end 10A disposed opposite the handle 12 as well as a rounded rear end 10B having a greater width .

Advantageously, the sole 10 has a length of less than 15 cm, and preferably of the order of 14 cm, and a width of less than 10 cm and preferably of the order of 8 cm, in order to provide the iron with great maneuverability. iron 1.

In accordance with figures 3 and 6 , the base 2 has at its upper end a concave location 24 on which the iron 1 can be placed in a rest position during inactive ironing phases or when storing the iron 1.

This location 24 comprises a V-shaped bottom comprising an anterior plane 24A and a posterior plane 24B of distinct inclination meeting substantially in the middle of the base 2, the anterior plane 24A being intended to receive the sole 10 of the iron 1 and the rear plane 24B being intended to receive the rear end of the handle 12 when the iron 1 occupies the rest position.

Preferably, the front plane 24A comprises protruding pads 25 made of a thermally insulating material on which the sole 10 of the iron 1 comes to rest when the latter occupies the rest position. The rear end of the handle 12, for its part, has a bevelled shape comprising a flat posterior surface 12A having an inclination adapted to come to rest flat against the posterior plane 24B when the sole 10 rests against the anterior plane 24A.

By way of example, the anterior 24A and posterior 24B planes are respectively inclined of the order of 28 ° and of the order of 6 ° relative to the lower plane 22 of the base 2, the posterior surface 12A of the handle 12 forming a V with the plane of the sole 10 which has an obtuse angle α of the order of 145 °, illustrated on figure 5 .

The location 24 also has a peripheral wall 24C which extends in height at the edge of the rear end of the posterior plane 24B as well as along the sides of the posterior 24B and anterior 24A planes. This peripheral wall 24C laterally guides the sole 10 of the iron 1 on the location 24 and constitutes an obstacle against which the rear end of the handle 12 abuts when the iron 1 is placed in the rest position on the location 24.

Preferably, the peripheral wall 24C comprises, at the level of the rear end of the base 2, a locking cross member 27 extending above the rear plane 24B, the rear end of the handle 12 coming to engage under the blocking cross member 27 when the iron 1 is placed in the rest position on the location 24.

In accordance with figures 1 and 2 , the front end of the base 2 is advantageously provided with a locking hoop 28 pivotally mounted on the edge of the front plane 24A and disposed near the front end of the location 24, the hoop 28 advantageously having a shape triangular.

The hoop 28 can pivot between a folded position, illustrated in the figures 2 and 3 , in which the hoop 28 is arranged parallel to the front plane 24A, on the edge of the location 24, and a position of immobilization of the iron 1, illustrated in the figures 1 and 6 , in which the hoop 28 bears against the body 11 of the iron 1, above the front point of the sole 10.

In a manner known per se, the base 2 contains return means, not visible in the figures, exerting on the hoop 28 a return torque whose direction is reversed when passing from an intermediate position situated between the folded position and the immobilized position, the return torque bringing the hoop 28 to the folded position when the latter is in the vicinity of the folded position and bringing the hoop 28 to the immobilized position when the latter is in the vicinity of the immobilized position. Such return means are illustrated in more detail in the application for patent FR 14 52469 filed by the plaintiff.

In accordance with the figure 5 , the bead 3 comes out of the iron 1 by one opening 15 formed on an upper surface of the handle 12, the opening 15 being preferably arranged slightly set back from the rear end of the handle 12, for example at a distance of the order of 1 to 2 cm.

The opening 15 advantageously receives a cord guide device 4 which envelops the cord 3 and maintains the latter in a predetermined direction.

In the particular example of embodiment illustrated, the cord guide device consists of an elastomeric reinforcing sheath 4 which maintains the cord 3 inclined towards the rear of the handle 12, with an inclination of the order of 45 ° with respect to horizontally when the iron 1 lies flat on the ironing surface of the sole 10.

The ironing device thus produced has the advantage of providing very good ergonomics of use.

Indeed, the user can easily place the iron 1 in the rest position on the location 24 of the base 2 by bringing the bevelled rear end of the handle 12 against the rear plane 24B, then by sliding the iron. ironing 1 towards the rear of the base 2 so that the rear end of the handle 12 engages under the blocking cross member 27 and abuts against the peripheral wall 24C. The user can then release the iron 1, or accompany it with a movement of the hand, so that it pivots forward, under the effect of its weight, and that the sole 10 comes to rest on the pads of the anterior plane 24A, the part of the peripheral wall 24C extending on the sides of the base 2 then helping to guide the sole 10 laterally on the anterior plane 24A.

When the iron 1 is in the rest position on the base 2, as illustrated in the figures 1 and 2 , the iron 1 rests stably on the base 2, without the risk of tilting backwards, due to the fulcrum obtained at the rear end of the handle 12. In addition, a space then results vacuum under the handle 12 allowing the user to easily grasp the handle 12 with the full hand by sliding the fingers of the hand in this space. The user can thus easily grab the iron 1 by its handle 12 and can therefore use the location 24 of the base 2 to regularly place the iron 1 during inactive ironing phases, these phases occurring regularly during ironing. an ironing session when the user changes the positioning of the garment to be ironed or changes the garment to be ironed.

Such a device also has the advantage of having an iron 1, the stability of which is improved when the user decides to place the iron 1 outside the base 2, for example directly on an ironing board, limiting the risk of falling.

Indeed, the exit of the cord 3 on the upper surface of the handle 12 makes it possible to release the rear end of the handle 12 which can therefore come to rest directly on a horizontal plane H of the ironing board, as is illustrated in FIG. figure 5 , when the iron 1 swings around the rear edge of the sole 10 under the effect of the traction exerted by the weight of the cord 3. However, the inclination of the rear surface 12A of the handle 12 allows the latter to rest substantially flat on the horizontal plane H, which improves the stability of the iron 1 in this position by providing stable support on the ironing board.

Finally, the appliance thus produced has the advantage of allowing the fixing of the iron 1 on the base 2 for its storage and the transport of the entire appliance by the handle 12 of the iron 1.

Indeed, the iron 1 can be easily immobilized in the rest position on the base 2 by tilting the arch 28 for blocking the folded position, shown in Figure figure 2 , in the immobilized position, shown on the figure 1 , wherein the hoop 28 bears against the body 11 of the iron 1. In this immobilized position, the return means of the hoop 28 exert a force which tends to push the iron 1 towards the 'rear of the base 2 so that the rear end of the iron 1 is immobilized by the engagement of the handle 12 under the blocking cross member 27 while the front end of the iron 1 is immobilized by the 'arch 28.

Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described and illustrated which was given only as an example. Modifications remain possible, in particular from the point of view of the constitution of the various elements or by substitution of technical equivalents, without thereby departing from the scope of protection of the invention.

Thus in an alternative embodiment not shown, the base may include a tank for generating pressurized steam and the bead may include a conduit for transporting steam to the iron.

Claims (12)

1. Household electrical ironing apparatus comprising an iron (1) comprising a heating sole (10) and a base (2) connected to the iron (1) by a cord (3), the base (2) comprising a receptacle (24) to place the iron (1) in a position of rest in which the sole (10) of the iron (1) rests on said receptacle (24), the iron (1) comprising a handle (12) for holding arranged in a cantilever fashion with respect to the sole (10), the handle (12) comprising a front end attached to a body (11) surmounting the sole (10) and a rear end that is free, characterised in that, in the rest position, the handle (12) comprises a bearing zone (12A) which comes to rest against the base (2) and in that the base (2) comprises a shape such that a space is formed under the handle (12), between the bearing zone (12A) and the body (11) to allow the fingers of a hand to pass through so that the iron (1) can be grasped by its handle (12).
2. Household electrical apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the bearing zone (12A) is arranged at the rear end of the handle (12).
3. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 2, characterised in that the receptacle (24) has a concave shape.
4. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the receptacle (24) comprises an anterior plane (24A) receiving the sole (10) of the iron (1) and a posterior plane (24B) on which the bearing zone (12A) of the handle (12) comes to rest when the iron (1) occupies the rest position, and in that the anterior (24A) and posterior (24B) planes have distinct inclinations and are joined at the level of a median portion of the base (2).
5. Household electrical ironing apparatus according to claim 4, characterised in that the base (2) comprises a peripheral wall (24C) which laterally borders the receptacle (24) at the level of the median portion of the base (2).
6. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the base (2) comprises means for immobilising the iron (1) on the base (2) comprising a fixed blocking element (27) coming to engage with the rear end of the handle (12) and a mobile blocking element (28) coming to bear on a portion of the body (11) located opposite the handle (12), the blocking element (28) being mobile in rotation between a folded position in which the iron (1) can be extracted from the base (2) and an immobilisation position in which the iron (1) is immobilised on the receptacle (24).
7. Household electrical apparatus according to claim 6, characterised in that the fixed blocking element is constituted by a cross-member (27) under which the rear end of the handle (12) is engaged.
8. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in the that the sole (10) comprises a flat ironing surface and in that the bearing zone (12A) is constituted by a flat posterior surface arranged at the rear end of the handle (12), the posterior surface (12A) of the handle forming an obtuse angle α with the plane of the ironing surface of the sole (10).
9. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that the cord (3) contains an electric cable and/or a conduit for the transport of a fluid.
10. Household electrical apparatus according to claim 9, characterised in that the cord (3) exits from the iron (1) through an opening arranged on an upper surface of the handle (12), said opening being advantageously arranged in the proximity of the rear end of the handle (12).
11. Household electrical apparatus according to claim 10, characterised in that the iron (1) comprises, at the level of the opening, a cord-guiding device (4) giving a preferable orientation to the cord (3) at the outlet of the handle (12).
12. Household electrical apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterised in that the sole (10) comprises a sharp front end and a rounded rear end of greater width.

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